Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
09TIJUANA709
2009-07-08 23:51:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Consulate Tijuana
Cable title:  

LAW ENFORCEMENT HIGH JINKS IN TJ: HOW NARCOTRAFFICKERS EVADE

Tags:  PINS SNAR KCRM MX 
pdf how-to read a cable
R 082351Z JUL 09
FM AMCONSUL TIJUANA
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 8977
INFO AMEMBASSY MEXICO 
ALL US CONSULATES IN MEXICO COLLECTIVE
AMCONSUL TIJUANA
215758
2009-07-08 23:51:00
09TIJUANA709
Consulate Tijuana
CONFIDENTIAL

R 082351Z JUL 09
FM AMCONSUL TIJUANA
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 8977
INFO AMEMBASSY MEXICO
ALL US CONSULATES IN MEXICO COLLECTIVE
AMCONSUL TIJUANA

TAGS: PINS SNAR KCRM MX
C O N F I D E N T I A L TIJUANA 000709


E.O. 12958: DECL: 7/1/2019
TAGS: PINS SNAR KCRM MX
SUBJECT: LAW ENFORCEMENT HIGH JINKS IN TJ: HOW NARCOTRAFFICKERS EVADE
AUTHORITIES
CLASSIFIED BY: ARADETSKY, Political Officer, Pol/Econ, STATE.
REASON: 1.4 (d)


215758
2009-07-08 23:51:00
09TIJUANA709
Consulate Tijuana
CONFIDENTIAL

R 082351Z JUL 09
FM AMCONSUL TIJUANA
TO SECSTATE WASHDC 8977
INFO AMEMBASSY MEXICO
ALL US CONSULATES IN MEXICO COLLECTIVE
AMCONSUL TIJUANA

TAGS: PINS SNAR KCRM MX
C O N F I D E N T I A L TIJUANA 000709


E.O. 12958: DECL: 7/1/2019
TAGS: PINS SNAR KCRM MX
SUBJECT: LAW ENFORCEMENT HIGH JINKS IN TJ: HOW NARCOTRAFFICKERS EVADE
AUTHORITIES
CLASSIFIED BY: ARADETSKY, Political Officer, Pol/Econ, STATE.
REASON: 1.4 (d)



1. (C) Mexican state and federal authorities have
made impressive numbers of arrests and narcotics seizures over
the last two years in Baja California, weakening, but not
defeating, the organized crime syndicates that operate in the
state. Despite these successes, the complex interactions among
the various local and federal law enforcement agencies and local
powerbrokers make Baja California, and Tijuana in particular,
still a relatively safe place for narcotraffickers to ply their
trade.


2. (C) This fact was demonstrated by a June 30 incident in
front of Consulate Tijuana. Acting on information from the law
enforcement community (LEC),Post's ARSO requested Baja
California State Preventative Police (PEP) appear at the
Consulate to arrest an American citizen who had a U.S. arrest
warrant for drug trafficking and was scheduled to come in to
renew his passport that day. PEP forces, as they have done in
similar cases in the past, duly stationed an unmarked car
outside the Consulate and waited for the subject to exit the
building. However, when the subject walked out, he entered a
Crown Victoria vehicle with two body guards which quickly sped
off and entered the parking lot of the Agua Caliente Racetrack,
across the street from the Consulate, which is owned by Tijuana
former mayor Jorge Hank Rohn. (NOTE: it is unclear if the
bodyguards inside the Crown Victoria were policemen offering
protection to the subject or part of Hank's security apparatus,
but the Crown Victoria is a typical car used by policemen who
provide protection for drug traffickers or government
officials). As soon as the vehicle entered the Racetrack, the
PEP forces stopped their (half-hearted) pursuit and told ARSO
that they "could not enter" the racetrack. And that was that.


3. (C) Hank is widely believed to have been a corrupt mayor
and to be still involved in narco-trafficking. Post usually
receives exceptional cooperation from the PEP, but our normal
liaison declined to involve himself in this case, and ARSO also
found it odd that the PEP stationed outside the Consulate did
not use normal police situational awareness procedures to notice
the Crown Victoria before the subject's escape. Despite
Hank's political defeat in the 2007 Baja California
gubernatorial race, he still enjoys wide influence in Tijuana,
and state law enforcement officials appear unwilling to meddle
on areas considered his turf. This is not the first time law
enforcement agencies from outside Tijuana have rubbed up against
Hank. Just a month ago, Mexican military forces were involved
in a standoff with local security at Hank's racetrack. There
are still plenty of safe havens for organized crime in the
border region.

KRAMER