Drug Kingpin Captured In Mexico

Reuters
Connor Simpson 4,038 Views Aug 1, 2011

A drug kingpin accused of masterminding the murder of a U.S. consulate worker and two others last year was arrested in Mexico on Saturday, The New York Times reports. Jose Antonio Acosta Hernandez is a former Mexican police officer turned leader of "La Linea," a gang in charge of the muscle for the Juarez drug cartel. The gang has been responsible for some of the most gruesome murders in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, one of the most dangerous places in the country. Acosta admitted responsibility for over 1,500 murders to police, according to the Associated Press. He's facing indictment for organizing the murder a U.S. consulate worker, her husband, and the husband of another consulate employee in March 2010, which was reportedly a case of mistaken identity, according to The Times. He also admitted to ordering members of his gang to open fire on a party of teenagers in 2009 that left 15 people dead.

The Mexican president announced the arrest over Twitter with a fairly well-placed pun, if a little accedental. Felipe Calderon tweeted that Acosta's arrest was "the biggest blow" to the Juarez drug operation since he sent 5,000 federal police officers to Ciudad Juarez to "curb violence in one of the world's most dangerous cities." Acosta is nicknamed "El Diego," which has no English translation, and may refer to Diego Maradona, Argentinian soccer legend and arguably the greatest player ever. Maradona once wrote a book called Yo Soy el Diego, which translates to I Am The Diego. Maradona, coincidently, suffered from a cocaine addiction for much of his career. 

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