El PASO, TEXAS — The leader of a violent prison gang who ordered the murders of three people tied to the U.S. Consulate – an employee, her husband and the husband of another U.S. Consulate employee – was found guilty of multiple murders, federal officials announced today.
Arturo Gallegos Castrellon, aka, “Benny,” aka “Farmero,” aka “51,” aka “Guero,” aka “Pecas,” aka “Tury,” aka “86,” 35, of Chihuahua, Mexico, was found guilty Friday in U.S. District Court of six counts of murder, five counts of racketeering, narcotics trafficking, narcotics importation, murder in a foreign country and money laundering conspiracies. During Gallegos Castrellon’s trial, evidence was presented that Gallegos Castrellon was a shot caller in the gang . He created and ordered teams of Barrio Azteca assassins from 2008 to 2010. The assassins were responsible for killing as many as 800 persons between January and August 2010, according to court evidence and testimony. They could have killed nearly 1,600 during a multi-year period, the evidence showed. Trial evidence also showed that the defendant ordered the March 13, 2010, triple homicide in Juarez, Mexico, of U.S. Consulate employee Leslie Enriquez, her husband Arthur Redelfs, and Jorge Salcido Ceniceros, the husband of another U.S. Consulate employee. Gallegos Castrellon was extradited to the United States from Mexico on June 28, 2012, said authorities. The jury also heard evidence that the defendant was the mastermind of the July 15, 2010, car bombing in Juarez, Mexico, which targeted Mexican Federal Police, according to authorities. The Barrio Azteca, or “BA,” a violent street and prison gang that began in the late 1980’s and expanded into a transnational criminal organization, according to the U.S. Justice Department. According to information presented in court, the Barrio Azteca formed an alliance with “La Linea,” which is part of the Juarez Drug Cartel. The Juarez Drug Cartel is also known as the Vincente Carrillo Fuentes Drug Cartel, or “VCF.” The purpose of the Barrio Azteca-La Linea alliance was to battle the Chapo Guzman Cartel and its allies for control of the drug trafficking routes through Juarez, Chihuahua, Mexico, according to court testimony. The drug routes through Juarez, which is known as the Juarez Plaza, are important to drug trafficking organizations because it is a principal illicit drug trafficking route into the United States. A total of 35 defendants were charged in an indictment and charged with committing various crimes including the 2010 Juarez Consulate Murders in Juarez, Mexico, racketeering, narcotics distribution and importation, retaliation against persons providing information to U.S. law enforcement, extortion, money laundering, murder, and obstruction of justice. Of the 35 defendants charged, 26 have been convicted, one committed suicide before the conclusion of his trial, and six are awaiting extradition, officials said. U.S. law enforcement officials are actively seeking to apprehend the two remaining fugitives in this case, including Eduardo Ravelo, an FBI Top Ten Most Wanted Fugitive. The case was investigated by the FBI’s El Paso Field Office, Albuquerque Field Office (Las Cruces Resident Agency), DEA Juarez, and DEA El Paso. Special assistance was provided by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives; Immigration and Customs Enforcement; the U.S. Marshals Service; U.S. Customs and Border Protection; Federal Bureau of Prisons; U.S. Diplomatic Security Service; the Texas Department of Public Safety; the Texas Department of Criminal Justice; El Paso Police Department; El Paso County Sheriff’s Office; El Paso Independent School District Police Department; Texas Alcohol and Beverage Commission; New Mexico State Police; Dona Ana County, N.M., Sheriff’s Office; Las Cruces, N.M., Police Department; Southern New Mexico Correctional Facility and Otero County Prison Facility New Mexico. Video of Arturo Gallegos Castrellon’s Arrest in Mexico