MONTERREY, Nuevo Leon – Detectives in this border state believe that a cartel boss who is wanted for murder in Texas is likely tied to the killing of another man in Cancun.
Despite operating primarily in Nuevo Leon and Texas, an independent cartel led by Jose Rodolfo “El Gato” Villarreal Hernandez was apparently able to make moves in the once peaceful beach destination city. Formerly a part of the Beltran Leyva Cartel, El Gato works in Nuevo Leon, primarily in the ritzy city of San Pedro, where he is often able to buy the help of local officials.
New information obtained by Breitbart News found a link between El Gato and the April 30 murder of 31-year-old businessman Rogelio Gomez Elizondo outside the Nizuc Resort and Spa in Cancun. The victim was riding in a Jeep Wrangler Sahara with Mexico State license plates on the day that a team of gunmen pulled up in an SUV and shot him several times. As part of the investigation, Quintana Roo authorities determined the gunmen took the time to shoot the victim once in the head in an execution-style manner. The victim also had a Santa Muerte (Saint Death) tattoo in his leg.
Breitbart News obtained exclusive information which revealed that one week before the murder, authorities in Nuevo Leon arrested Gomez Elizondo during a checkpoint inspection where he refused a search of his vehicle. Inside the Chevrolet pickup, authorities found a Glock pistol with two magazines and body armor. The vehicle had Nuevo Leon license plates RK-18-104, bulletproof windows, and police-like strobe lights. The man was turned over to Mexican federal authorities and it remains unclear when he was released. A Mexican law enforcement source revealed to Breitbart News that Gomez Elizondo was a known operational associate of Villarreal Hernadez, the man known as El Gato.
Villarreal Hernandez is currently wanted in the U.S. for allegedly ordering the murder of Gulf Cartel attorney-turned-government informant Jesus Guerrero Chapa. Guerrero Chapa was living in the Dallas suburb of Southlake when gunmen murdered him after a long-term surveillance operation. Villarreal had a personal vendetta against Guerrero Chapa, who he blamed for the murder of his father.
Editor’s Note: Breitbart News traveled to the Mexican States of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo León to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. The writers would face certain death at the hands of the various cartels that operate in those areas including the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas if a pseudonym were not used. Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles are published in both English and in their original Spanish. This article was written by Tony Aranda from Nuevo Leon.