05/18/11 – The Mexican Army arrested another major drug lord this week when soldiers captured Martín Beltrán Coronel, also known as “El Águila,” in Zapopan, Jalisco on Thursday, May 12. Beltrán Coronel had been one of the leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel since August of last year after his uncle and infamous drug lord, Ignacio Coronel Villarreal, was killed by the Mexican military in July 2010. Beltrán Coronel quickly moved into the role as leader of the “Coronel Villarreal” branch of the Sinaloa Cartel, garnering support from Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera, the cartel’s outright leader and Mexico’s most wanted drug lord.
According to the Secretary of National Defense (Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional, Sedena), since becoming a leader, Beltrán Coronel “had successfully controlled the organization and the trafficking of drugs from Central and South America through the Pacific, maintaining his center of operations in both the states of Jalisco and Colima, while collaborating with his cousin, José Ángel Carrasco Coronel.” He also had reunited the Jalisco Nueva Generación and La Resistencia cartels, two smaller organizations that had previously split from the Valencia cartel, El Universal reported.
Beltrán Coronel was arrested in a nearby suburb in Jalisco to the one that his uncle had been killed in last year. The military also apprehended four others on Thursday, two of which were women. Sedena reported having seized “nine fire arms, six vehicles, jewelry, communication devices, and more than $400,000” from the scene of the arrest.
Sources:
“El Ejército mexicano detiene a Martín Beltrán Coronel alias ‘El Águila,’ sucesor de Ignacio Coronel Villarreal alias ‘Nacho Coronel.'” Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional. May 13, 2011.
Ellingwood, Ken. “Mexico military says drug lord’s successor arrested.” Los Angeles Times. May 13, 2011.
Gómez, Francisco. “El Ejército detiene a Beltrán Coronel.” El Universal. May 14, 2011.
