Arturo Beltrán Leyva
Marcos Arturo Beltrán Leyva (September 27, 1961 – December 16, 2009) was a Mexican drug lord who, alongside his brothers, founded and led the Beltrán-Leyva Cartel. Prior to founding his own organization, Beltran-Leyva was a longtime high-ranking member of the Sinaloa Cartel. His organization was responsible for cocaine, marijuana, heroin and methamphetamine production, transportation and wholesaling. It controlled numerous drug trafficking corridors into the United States and was responsible for money laundering, gun-running, and other acts of violence against men, women, and children in Mexico. The organization was connected with the assassinations of numerous Mexican law enforcement officials.
Arturo Beltrán Leyva | |
|---|---|
| Born | Marcos Arturo Beltrán Leyva September 27, 1961 Badiraguato, Mexico |
| Died | December 16, 2009 (aged 48) Cuernavaca, Mexico |
| Cause of death | Multiple gunshot wounds |
| Other names | El Botas Blancas El Barbas La Muerte El Jefe de Jefes |
| Occupation | Head of the Beltrán Leyva Cartel |
Since the mid-1990s Arturo Beltrán Leyva allegedly led powerful groups of assassins to fight for trade routes in northeastern Mexico. By 2008, through the use of corruption or intimidation, he was able to infiltrate Mexico's political, judicial and police institutions to steal classified information about anti-drug operations, and even infiltrated the Interpol office in Mexico.