Federal authorities have set their sights on the wife of a fugitive Mexican drug lord wanted for the kidnapping and murder of a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent.
The U.S. Treasury Department publicly named Diana Espinoza Salazar, the wife of Mexican Kingpin Rafael Caro Quintero as a new name to their list under the Kingpin Designation Act. The move seizes any assets that Espinoza Salazar may have in the U.S. and prohibits any American citizen from doing business with her.
Caro Quintero is described in court records as the co-founder of the Guadalajara Cartel, the predecessor of the now massive Sinaloa Cartel. Caro Quintero was convicted in Mexico for the 1985 kidnapping and murder of DEA Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena in Mexico. As previously reported by Breitbart Texas, Camarena was sentenced to 40 years in prison but in 2013, he was released from prison after a suspicious ruling by Mexican judges. The drug lord is just one of the many suspicious rulings that carried out by Mexican judges that have resulted in top drug lords being released from prison. Caro Quintero was immediately released without giving the U.S. an opportunity to request his extradition.
Upon his release, Caro Quintero has returned to drug trafficking activities, Treasury officials said.
Espinoza Salazar, who also goes by the name of Altagracia Espinoza Aguilar, is described by the Treasury Department as the common law wife of Caro Quintero and accused her of holding assets and conducting activities on his behalf. in 2008, Espinoza Salazar was arrested by Mexican authorities with her then husband, a COlombian drug lord. She was sent to the Puente Grande prison where she met Caro Quintero.
Treasury officials claim that Espinoza Salazar has used drug money to purchase assets under her name that in fact belong to Caro Quintero. The U.S. Department of Justice is currently offering a $5 million reward for Caro Quintero’s capture since the man is still facing multiple federal charges in the U.S. in connection with Camarena’s murder.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award winning journalist with Breitbart Texas you can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook.
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