Washington.- Dominican authorities have detected cells of Mexico’s Sinaloa drug Cartel in the northern part of their country, said its ambassador during a congressional hearing in the United States Wednesday.
Aníbal de Castro, who appeared before the Senate committee for the combat of international drug trafficking, said the Mexican national Luis Fernando Bertolucci Castillo after his arrest confessed that the Sinaloa Cartel “aims to create a route to Europe through the Dominican Republic.”
After being detained and questioned, Bertolucci was extradited to the United States, where he faces charges of money laundering and drug trafficking.
The diplomat linked the cartel, which could be operating in the northern cities of Santiago, La Vega and Jarabacoa, with the recent murders of three Colombians, a Spaniard and a Venezuelan and noted that the Sinaloa Cartel can “be receiving help from Dominican criminal groups in the Cibao (north) region to acquire chemicals used in the manufacture of narcotics.”
Cooperation
De Castro also lauded Washington’s cooperation with the Caribbean nation in the war on drugs, but called “crucial” the creation of a Tactical Air Control Center with high capacity radars to improve airspace surveillance, especially along the Haitian border, among other measures.
Written by: RoyStone, 2 Feb 2012 7:58 AM
From: Australia
Why are the illicit drugs going to Europe via the Dominican Republic?
(a) Line of least resistance?
(b) Lowest probability of getting caught?
(c) Least consequences if caught?
(d) Plenty of laundering opportunities?
(e) All of the above?
From: Dominican Republic
Ok you Domincan patriots.
Tell your corrupt government of Leonel to stop takeing bribes and looking the other way.
Since this route is to Europe then ask the Europoean community for help.
Stop your persiostent begging and then American bashing after you get help.
You got what you voted for.
From: Dominican Republic, vieja Santo Domingo
And how do drugs actually get to europe from Santiago ?? are they trucked to ports in the capital and Puerto Plata for ship transportation. ..
But I agree that we need all the help we can get to track down this cell and to eliminate it . But I am still wondering about where the drugs come from , how they arrive and how they leave .
As for the chemical drugs ,,these are made in many countries and are killers of the young who use them at parties and discos ...they can be made in garages and inside houses...but all sales of chemicals must be registered and excess purchases investigated
Written by: RoyStone, 2 Feb 2012 8:04 AM
From: Australia
foresthill, Most Dominican patriotism seems to only extends so far as attacking critics, but not to addressing problems, or even acknowledging them.
From: Dominican Republic
Firstly...what does a mobile radar in a snowbank have to do with tracking a drug cartel in the DR? Unless that snow is not what we think it is!
Bottom line.....this place has been lax in controlling the flow....now they get in too deep and look what happens. It will truly be a death-blow to this country should things get out of hand.
Official here will pat themselves on the back for increased tourism, but the reality is...most of the increase comes from those who have lost confidence in Mexico as a vacation location. Once we loose "more" control, we will end up in the same situation as them.
From: Dominican Republic, vieja Santo Domingo
I was reading the address by Rudi Giullani last night about controls against the criminals and his number one message is that you must pay top dollars to the police especially in this area ..we obviously do not .
I agree with Mike entirely but something does not seem right with this story ,,as the big drug catches going to Europe have occurred in the east but maybe there is a double front .
If it is cocaine from Colombia that is the main problem ...is it that hard to track it ??
Written by: pelaut, 2 Feb 2012 8:45 AM
From: United States
RoyStone:
f) aid and abetment by U.S. DOJ and high ex officials
From: United States, FREEPORT, Long Island.... (Look, beyond the words)
Sure, now that leo is leaving....Another, hat in hand and tail between the legs gag.
That looks like a picture of the snow cap in san jose de las matas.....lol
Where is the picture of the two year old gift(RADAR) from uncle Sam ?
I thought those bi-planes eliminated 90% of air drops and narco air drops were no longer a Tret or a treat
IS THERE ANY TRUTH TO ANY STORY RELATED TO DOMINICANS ? BESIDES LIVING NIGGA RICH....
From: United States
this drug problem wont stop until this country looks like miami, the same exact thing is happpening here, miami and ny were built from drugs and money laundering, i know that the gov looks the other way when they catch someone which is sad, but unfortunately it will only get worst
Written by: curlando, 2 Feb 2012 9:44 AM
From: United States, Bronx
Stopping begging. Solve your own problems in the Dominican Republic.
Written by: Atabey, 2 Feb 2012 9:56 AM
From: United States, NYC
Drug transhipment routs are continuously being updated and all possibilities considered. The Economist magazine has an excellent series of how difficult this problem is to control in Central America and the Caribbean Basin.
Central America's woes
The drug war hits Central America
Organised crime is moving south from Mexico into a bunch of small countries far too weak to deal with it
http://www.economist.com/node/18560287Central America
The tormented isthmus
Big-time drug trafficking has arrived in Central America. Its poor, politically polarised countries must now try to cope
http://www.economist.com/node/18558254Written by: Atabey, 2 Feb 2012 9:59 AM
From: United States, NYC
"As if being battered by nature, bad government and youth gangs were not enough, Central America now finds itself thrust into the front line of the drugs trade and prey to big-time organised crime. Nearly all the world’s cocaine is produced in Colombia, Peru and Bolivia. The biggest consumer is the United States, where the wholesale price of a kilo of the stuff, even full of impurities, starts at $12,500. The route to market used to run from Colombia to the tip of Florida, across the Caribbean. But the United States Coast Guard shut down that corridor by the early 1990s, and shipments switched to the Pacific coast of Mexico. Now Mexico, too, has increased the pressure on the traffickers, just as Colombia has done in the south.
Ever supple, the drugs business has sought new premises. Somewhere between 250 and 350 tonnes of cocaine—or almost the whole amount heading for the United States—now pass through Guatemala each year, according to American officials.
Written by: Atabey, 2 Feb 2012 10:00 AM
From: United States, NYC
Whereas a decade ago Central America seized less cocaine than either Mexico or the Caribbean, in 2008 it intercepted three times more than the other two combined. Mexico’s Sinaloa, Gulf and Zetas mobs are now active through much of the isthmus, often with local allies. Unlike the Colombians, they pay their local help in drugs, not cash.
The impact has been lethal. Guatemala’s murder rate has doubled in the past decade. In both Guatemala and El Salvador, the rate of killing is higher now than during their civil wars. Guatemala’s government reckons that about two-fifths of murders are linked to the drugs business. Even Panama, much richer than many Central American countries and a favourite retirement spot for wealthy foreigners, has seen its murder rate almost double in the past three years.
As well as using Central America as a corridor, the traffickers are moving more of their operations there.
Written by: Atabey, 2 Feb 2012 10:01 AM
From: United States, NYC
Guatemala to Costa Rica, partly because of higher insurance premiums caused by insecurity, according to a former manager.
In the northern triangle, weak law enforcement and tracts of wilderness make a perfect environment for organised crime. The Petén, a sprawling, sparsely populated jungle region in northern Guatemala, has become a landing zone for clandestine flights from Colombia and Venezuela. In the Laguna del Tigre national park lies a “cemetery” of more than 30 crashed light aircraft which had been used to ferry cocaine. (The drugs business is so profitable that aircraft are considered disposable.) Locals are paid by narcos to keep the runways open, and sometimes clear more themselves to attract business. "
Written by: Atabey, 2 Feb 2012 10:01 AM
From: United States, NYC
“We went through a phase in which we made the mistake of seeing ourselves as a supply transit centre, so we just had to interdict. That’s not enough. In Central America drugs are produced, processed and consumed,” says Laura Chinchilla, Costa Rica’s president. In March, to official surprise, what looked like a Mexican cocaine factory was uncovered in Honduras.
As well as taking lives, insecurity carries a heavy economic cost. All in all, dealing with crime and violence costs Central America around 8% of its GDP, according to a report this month by the World Bank. In the most violent countries, cutting the murder rate by 10% could boost income growth per head by up to 1% a year, the bank reckons. Security-related costs are equal to around 4% of private businesses’ sales. Alberto Díaz Lobo of Constructora Eterna, a building firm in Honduras, says his security bill has gone up about 20% in the past five years. Walmart recently moved some of its Central American operations from
Written by: JEM237, 2 Feb 2012 10:53 AM
From: United States, In your mind
Hey foresthill,
Why don't you start by telling the U.S. to stop supplying arms to the Mexican cartels? How about you tell the U.S. to stop being the top consumer of illicit drugs?
From: United States
Very few seem to remember the Contra wars in the 1980's in which tons of US/Soviet weapons and ammunition were sent to Central America. DO you think that some of the weapons such as grenades, and fully automatic weapons such as M-16's FLN and Ak 47 were all turned in after the war? Most ended up in police custody and were sold for beer money over the years.
Written by: rbrayan, 2 Feb 2012 12:07 PM
From: Dominican Republic
Lets revamp all our law enforcement agencies, then we will have a better foothold to fight this war. As long as our system remains the same, so will all the social, political, and economic problems.
From: United States, UTAH
*Hello! Please stop,the goverment has to stop doing this,We ave an army,We have air force,and a navy.I hate when every february 27 all those good for nothing show all the forces THEY have but when It comes to show the country Who they are,we do not see them acting.
Written by: ings0389, 2 Feb 2012 1:05 PM
From: United States
Buehhhh
From: United States, words of wisdom from the nutcracker
How about you toughen up your immigration laws , that would be a good start to counter the illegal drug flow , when you have open borders along with a corrupted goverment , combine that with flawed education system, It is no wonder the dominican republic is so backwards
Written by: plinio75, 2 Feb 2012 6:08 PM
From: United States, key West
It seems that the drug's cartel permietes all walks of lives every society,governments and individuals. As longs as it will be drug adits so will be drugs suppliers. This problems have been in our societies for hondres of years. Remenber that drugs were legal before and now illegal,the same individuals that were in the drugs supply still are the shadow manipulatos of the drugs cartel.
Written by: curios1, 2 Feb 2012 9:35 PM
From: United States, right where im standin
WELL i think the world will spin just nicely without drug dealers, runners, and cartels. untill you get tougher and treat them more harshly you will have them.
Written by: Grosero, 3 Feb 2012 9:04 AM
From: United States
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has faced a new round of criticism over a controversial tactic in which U.S. authorities allowed gun buyers to move into México arms destined for drug cartels.
In testimony to Congress Thursday, Holder said Operation Fast and Furious was flawed, and that allowing arms to walk under any circumstance is unacceptable.
"The tactic of not interdicting weapons, despite having the ability and legal authority to do so, appears to have been adopted in a misguided effort to stem the alarming number of illegal firearms that are trafficked each year from the United States to Mexico," Holder said. "Now, to be sure, stopping this dangerous flow of weapons is a laudable and critical goal, but attempting to achieve it by using such inappropriate tactics is neither acceptable nor excusable."
Who's The biggest smuggler?
Why it's Uncle Sammy
Written by: Perez, 3 Feb 2012 2:29 PM
From: Dominican Republic
Who the heck is putting minuses on foresthill comment? The Dude is telling the friggn truth! I bet the bozo/s are the ones that is in favor the way the POS president is handling things!!!
Written by: Perez, 3 Feb 2012 2:32 PM
From: Dominican Republic
I wonder why DR can't do anything for itself?? What an embarassment!
Written by: RoyStone, 3 Feb 2012 2:52 PM
From: Australia
Perez, It ain't me.
Foresthill gets some things right, and is utter bull$hit on others, but I don't minus anyone. If I don't like what someone writes, I say so and why.
Written by: RoyStone, 3 Feb 2012 2:56 PM
From: Australia
Perez, asks:
"I wonder why DR can't do anything for itself?"
2 expressions I picked up on this site, I think from Dready,
"da odda guy syndrome" and
"entitlement mentality"
Sums it up rather well, don't you think?
Written by: poncaal, 3 Feb 2012 10:20 PM
From: United States
pluss T-6 c+ airplains from Beech
Written by: RoyStone, 3 Feb 2012 10:55 PM
From: Australia
Foresthill is right when he said
"Ok you Domincan patriots. Tell your corrupt government of Leonel to stop takeing bribes and looking the other way. Since this route is to Europe then ask the Europoean community for help. Stop your persiostent begging and then American bashing after you get help. You got what you voted for."
So why was he minused?
Written by: curios1, 3 Feb 2012 11:05 PM
From: United States, right where im standin
theres probably a hidden agenda !
Written by: RoyStone, 3 Feb 2012 11:09 PM
From: Australia
curios1, I don't have a problem with agendum, only where they're disguised.
Call a spade a fu(kin' spade, I say.
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(a) Line of least resistance?
(b) Lowest probability of getting caught?
(c) Least consequences if caught?
(d) Plenty of laundering opportunities?
(e) All of the above?
Tell your corrupt government of Leonel to stop takeing bribes and looking the other way.
Since this route is to Europe then ask the Europoean community for help.
Stop your persiostent begging and then American bashing after you get help.
You got what you voted for.
But I agree that we need all the help we can get to track down this cell and to eliminate it . But I am still wondering about where the drugs come from , how they arrive and how they leave .
As for the chemical drugs ,,these are made in many countries and are killers of the young who use them at parties and discos ...they can be made in garages and inside houses...but all sales of chemicals must be registered and excess purchases investigated
Bottom line.....this place has been lax in controlling the flow....now they get in too deep and look what happens. It will truly be a death-blow to this country should things get out of hand.
Official here will pat themselves on the back for increased tourism, but the reality is...most of the increase comes from those who have lost confidence in Mexico as a vacation location. Once we loose "more" control, we will end up in the same situation as them.
I agree with Mike entirely but something does not seem right with this story ,,as the big drug catches going to Europe have occurred in the east but maybe there is a double front .
If it is cocaine from Colombia that is the main problem ...is it that hard to track it ??
f) aid and abetment by U.S. DOJ and high ex officials
That looks like a picture of the snow cap in san jose de las matas.....lol
Where is the picture of the two year old gift(RADAR) from uncle Sam ?
I thought those bi-planes eliminated 90% of air drops and narco air drops were no longer a Tret or a treat
IS THERE ANY TRUTH TO ANY STORY RELATED TO DOMINICANS ? BESIDES LIVING NIGGA RICH....
Central America's woes
The drug war hits Central America
Organised crime is moving south from Mexico into a bunch of small countries far too weak to deal with it
http://www.economist.com/node/18560287
Central America
The tormented isthmus
Big-time drug trafficking has arrived in Central America. Its poor, politically polarised countries must now try to cope
http://www.economist.com/node/18558254
"As if being battered by nature, bad government and youth gangs were not enough, Central America now finds itself thrust into the front line of the drugs trade and prey to big-time organised crime. Nearly all the world’s cocaine is produced in Colombia, Peru and Bolivia. The biggest consumer is the United States, where the wholesale price of a kilo of the stuff, even full of impurities, starts at $12,500. The route to market used to run from Colombia to the tip of Florida, across the Caribbean. But the United States Coast Guard shut down that corridor by the early 1990s, and shipments switched to the Pacific coast of Mexico. Now Mexico, too, has increased the pressure on the traffickers, just as Colombia has done in the south.
Ever supple, the drugs business has sought new premises. Somewhere between 250 and 350 tonnes of cocaine—or almost the whole amount heading for the United States—now pass through Guatemala each year, according to American officials.
Whereas a decade ago Central America seized less cocaine than either Mexico or the Caribbean, in 2008 it intercepted three times more than the other two combined. Mexico’s Sinaloa, Gulf and Zetas mobs are now active through much of the isthmus, often with local allies. Unlike the Colombians, they pay their local help in drugs, not cash.
The impact has been lethal. Guatemala’s murder rate has doubled in the past decade. In both Guatemala and El Salvador, the rate of killing is higher now than during their civil wars. Guatemala’s government reckons that about two-fifths of murders are linked to the drugs business. Even Panama, much richer than many Central American countries and a favourite retirement spot for wealthy foreigners, has seen its murder rate almost double in the past three years.
As well as using Central America as a corridor, the traffickers are moving more of their operations there.
In the northern triangle, weak law enforcement and tracts of wilderness make a perfect environment for organised crime. The Petén, a sprawling, sparsely populated jungle region in northern Guatemala, has become a landing zone for clandestine flights from Colombia and Venezuela. In the Laguna del Tigre national park lies a “cemetery” of more than 30 crashed light aircraft which had been used to ferry cocaine. (The drugs business is so profitable that aircraft are considered disposable.) Locals are paid by narcos to keep the runways open, and sometimes clear more themselves to attract business. "
As well as taking lives, insecurity carries a heavy economic cost. All in all, dealing with crime and violence costs Central America around 8% of its GDP, according to a report this month by the World Bank. In the most violent countries, cutting the murder rate by 10% could boost income growth per head by up to 1% a year, the bank reckons. Security-related costs are equal to around 4% of private businesses’ sales. Alberto Díaz Lobo of Constructora Eterna, a building firm in Honduras, says his security bill has gone up about 20% in the past five years. Walmart recently moved some of its Central American operations from
Why don't you start by telling the U.S. to stop supplying arms to the Mexican cartels? How about you tell the U.S. to stop being the top consumer of illicit drugs?
In testimony to Congress Thursday, Holder said Operation Fast and Furious was flawed, and that allowing arms to walk under any circumstance is unacceptable.
"The tactic of not interdicting weapons, despite having the ability and legal authority to do so, appears to have been adopted in a misguided effort to stem the alarming number of illegal firearms that are trafficked each year from the United States to Mexico," Holder said. "Now, to be sure, stopping this dangerous flow of weapons is a laudable and critical goal, but attempting to achieve it by using such inappropriate tactics is neither acceptable nor excusable."
Who's The biggest smuggler?
Why it's Uncle Sammy
Foresthill gets some things right, and is utter bull$hit on others, but I don't minus anyone. If I don't like what someone writes, I say so and why.
"I wonder why DR can't do anything for itself?"
2 expressions I picked up on this site, I think from Dready,
"da odda guy syndrome" and
"entitlement mentality"
Sums it up rather well, don't you think?
"Ok you Domincan patriots. Tell your corrupt government of Leonel to stop takeing bribes and looking the other way. Since this route is to Europe then ask the Europoean community for help. Stop your persiostent begging and then American bashing after you get help. You got what you voted for."
So why was he minused?
Call a spade a fu(kin' spade, I say.