For the past three years, federal agents say, associates
of the Gulf Cartel trucked in thousands of pounds of marijuana to Apopka
and other Orlando communities — establishing the area as a distribution
hub.
They buried millions of dollars on properties in Central
Florida.
They stashed assault rifles and ballistic vests in Apopka. They stored their drugs in open areas such as garden nurseries.
They stashed assault rifles and ballistic vests in Apopka. They stored their drugs in open areas such as garden nurseries.
All the while, their drug trade brought in
millions of dollars.
Photo: Omar Martinez
Photo: Omar Martinez
Nine suspected members of the Central Florida ring were
recently charged by federal prosecutors in Orlando as part of a complex
investigation that spanned to Texas and involved multiple federal and local
law-enforcement agencies.
Investigators executed search warrants throughout Florida
and in Texas, and seized more than 6,000 pounds of marijuana, more than 90
firearms and cash.
An 81-page criminal complaint filed in the case details
much of the group's suspected activities, including previous interactions with
law enforcement.
Photo: Jose Franco
The case, in some ways, is a textbook example of what's
happening in the American drug trade, said Ted Galen Carpenter, a senior fellow
at the Cato Institute and author of "The Fire Next Door: Mexico's
Drug Violence and the Danger to America," which will be published in
October.
"I wouldn't find this incident unusual at all,"
Carpenter said. "The Mexican cartels have connections with domestic
trafficking gangs.
"Their tentacles are quite extensive in the United
States."
In the Central Florida ring, agents say, marijuana was
shipped in bulk from a trafficker in McAllen, Texas, to Panama City then picked up and brought to Central Florida
or Jacksonville for distribution.
Photo: Alvan Alvarado
After the marijuana was sold locally, the cash was picked
up and taken back on the same route, to Panama City and then to
Texas.Once the cash made it to Panama City in the Florida
Panhandle, a new load of marijuana was picked up for distribution, and the
cycle continued.
Court documents detail the roles of each of the suspected
Central Florida ring members. Some were organizers, some were drivers, and
others were involved with offloading and delivery.
Sources told agents each shipment of marijuana produced
$800,000 to $1 million in proceeds.
The group buried the cash on various properties until it
was ready to be shipped back to Texas.
It may seem a risky way to store millions, but Carpenter
said it's not surprising.
Unlike legal businesses, drug traffickers can't simply
deposit their revenue into a bank account.
"You can't just walk into a Bank of America …
and deposit $80,000 in cash," Carpenter said. "That would ring alarm
bells all over the place."
Source: Orlando Sentinel
(Photos of 3 of the homes, value of each around 50K)
Added information:
Text and map unedited; all photos added
Department of Justice RELEASE HERE
82 Page Indictment HERE