Longmire - Cartel: the coming invasion of Mexicos drug wars

THE COMING INVASION OF MEXICOS DRUG WARS

SYLVIA LONGMIRE

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This book is dedicated to the men and women of US law enforcement who work every day to defend our borders from the violent criminals who would dare encroach upon them.

CARTEL
Copyright Sylvia Longmire, 2011.
All rights reserved.

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First published in 2011 by PALGRAVE MACMILLAN in the U.S.a division of St. Martins Press LLC, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.

ISBN: 978-0-230-11137-0

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Longmire, Sylvia.

Cartel : the coming invasion of Mexicos drug wars / Sylvia Longmire.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-0-230-11137-0

1. Drug trafficMexico. 2. CartelsMexico. 3. Drug dealersMexico. 4. Organized crimeMexico. 5. Drug controlMexico. I. Title. HV5840.M4L66 2011
363.450972dc22

2011005475

A catalogue record of the book is available from the British Library.

Design by Letra Libre

First edition: October 2011

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Printed in the United States of America.

THE EVENTS DEPICTED in this book are true. However, some names and details have been changed to protect the privacy or security of real people. In a few situations, the realities of the drug wars are described but are presented in hypothetical situations using composite characters.

EVEN THOUGH IVE BEEN writing about Mexico for several years, the idea of consolidating my work into a book hadnt really crossed my mind until early 2010. In March, I was contacted by writer/director/producer Don Sikorski, who had some questions for me about the Barrio Azteca street gang for a 60 Minutes piece he was working on. After I told him what I could, he asked me if I had ever thought about packaging my work into a TV pitch or a book. I told him I hadnt, but it sounded like an interesting idea. My thanks go out to Don for starting me on a path I hadnt really intended to explore but am now so grateful I did.

Once I made the commitment to write Cartel, I started doing a lot of research on the very daunting book publishing process. Fortunately, that brought me to my agent, Diane Stockwell at Globo Libros. I have so appreciated her enthusiasm for this project, and her feedback on my work has been invaluable. Her hard work also connected me with my editor at Palgrave Macmillan, Luba Ostashevsky, and her assistant, Laura Lancaster. Their expert guidance helped me make the transition from analyst and blogger to a bona fide book author.

Speaking of that transition, it was interesting making the switch from writing analytical products for the Air Force and California state government to writing for a general audience. Barnard Thompson at MexiData.com gave me the opportunity to start doing just that for his website, and his ideas for articles helped me explore aspects of the drug war I might never have come across on my own. Im also eternally grateful to David Silverberg, editor at Homeland Security Today magazine. He took a big risk by putting my first-ever magazine article on his December 2009 cover, and its led to a great and lasting professional relationship.

Ive found over the last few years that the community of people who regularly follow developments in Mexicos drug warboth personally and professionallyis really quite small. Some of these folks who have kindly helped me by bouncing around ideas, providing feedback, writing endorsements, or just giving me inspiration for Cartel include Dr. George Grayson of the College of William and Mary, Fred Burton of Stratfor, author and journalist Samuel Logan, Lt. John P. Sullivan, Paul Hagerty, Dane Schiller, Nick Valencia, Leo Miele, Garrett Olson, Molly Molloy, Tony Kail, Gerardo Carrillo, MGen (ret.) Jim Dozier, and Tom Boerman.

There are dozens of analysts who are fighting the good fight for border security and who have my utmost respect. We worked long and hard together across the milesand teleconferencesto make sense of the threats to our southwest border states. Special thanks go to my partners in crime Tom Carroll (editor and mentor extraordinaire), James Parker, Tony Frangipane, Juanita Guy, and Lora Mae Stewart. Im also thankful to officials like ATF SAIC Bill Newell and former Arizona attorney general Terry Goddard for taking time out of their busy schedules to help me with my fact-checking and for providing some overall context on the southbound weapons trafficking problem.

There are thousands of agents, inspectors, police officers, and deputies who bust their tails every day to make sure drugs dont come into our country and guns and cash dont go out. Ive been lucky to have met many of these folks who work along our southwest border and I have a lot of respect and appreciation for what they do and the dangers they often face. Some were also gracious enough to take the time to tell me some of their war stories for inclusion in this book. I thank them for their service, and for helping secure our borders despite the challenges, frustrations, and obstacles that sometimes seem insurmountable.