Mexican court lets powerful ex-drug lord go free
The 60-year-old founder of the guadalajara cartel is to be released immediately, the judicial authorities announced.
According to media reports, caro quintero left the prison on friday morning. Caro quintero was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the murder of an agent of the u.S. Anti-drug police (DEA).
A spokesman for the attorney general's office, however, told the dpa news agency that caro quintero remains in custody. First of all, it had to be checked whether an old extradition request by the united states was still valid.
Attorney general jesús murillo karam said this evening that he respects the decision of the court, but is very concerned. He said that his office would consider whether caro quintero could continue to be held because of the seriousness of his crime.
The DEA was disappointed by the decision of the mexican court. Caro quintero was the mastermind behind the murder of DEA agent enrique camarena salazar, a press release from the U.S. Authorities said. Every effort will be made to retry caro quintero in the united states.
DEA agent camarena salazar and his pilot alfredo zavala avelar were kidnapped in february 1985 in guadalajara, jalisco state. Months later, the bodies of the two mannerists were found. Caro quintero allegedly ordered the murders.
The court has now found procedural errors. Because the DEA agent was not a diplomatic or consular employee, caro quintero should not have been tried in federal court. Instead, the charges against him had to be heard in a simple court of law. He had already served the sentence for his other offenses.
Caro quintero was one of the most powerful cartel bosses in mexico in the 1980s. Together with miguel angel felix gallardo and ernesto fonseca carrillo, he founded the guadalajara cartel, which later became the sinaloa and juarez cartels.
He is said to have at times forced over 4000 people to work on his drug plantations in the state of chihuahua. In addition, he is considered a pioneer in the collaboration with the rough colombian cartels.
In 1985, caro quintero was arrested with his girlfriend sara cristina cosio vidaurri martinez in costa rica. Vidaurri came from a powerful political family in jalisco and was related to a former governor of the state.
Caro quintero was sentenced in 1989 to 199 years in prison for murder, drug trafficking, forming a criminal organization and violating the weapons law. However, the maximum sentence in mexico is 40 years, and the penalty has been reduced accordingly.