Former Mexican officer, a symbol of fight against cartels, killed in ambush
Former Mexican officer, a symbol of fight against cartels, killed in ambush A Mexican federal police officer who survived a 2015 helicopter crash blamed on cartels was killed in an ambush on April 30. He was seen as a symbol of the fight against organized crime.
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El Mencho documentary: How CJNG Mexican cartel boss is infiltrating US
This short film details The Courier Journal's investigation into CJNG and its leader, El Mencho, began in early 2019 and what was uncovered.
Alton Strupp and Matt Stone, Louisville Courier Journal
A former Mexican police officer, known as a symbol of the fight against drug cartels after emerging as the lone survivor of a 2015 attack on a military helicopter, died in an ambush April 30.
An SUV bumped a black truck driven by Iván Morales Corrales, 43. Gunmen hopped out and fired more than a dozen shots, killing Morales and an unidentified woman in the state of Morelos, a 2.5-hour drive south of Mexico City, according to two retired U.S. drug agents and multiple Mexican media outlets. It's unclear who killed the victims or why. The case remains under investigation.
The killings in the city of Temixco – typically a peaceful place – came during the 10th anniversary week of the downing of the helicopter, blamed on Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación, known as CJNG. The cartel is one of the most militant in Mexico, turning territories they control into warzones through use of rudimentary tanks, roadside bombs and disappearances.
'If it was CJNG, it's a very symbolic demonstration of power,' Victoria Dittmar, an expert on Mexican cartels with InSight Crime, a group that does research on organized crime. 'It's now the headline on every newspaper in the country.'
The attack comes amid ongoing brazen strikes against Mexican authorities that began with cartel soldiers gunning down the helicopter carrying Morales in 2015. CJNG's attack on the helicopter came when authorities were on a mission to capture the group's elusive leader Rubén "Nemesio" Osegura-Cervantes, known as 'El Mencho.' Authorities never expected such a direct attack on the military and it was seen as a watershed moment.
A decade later, attacks on Mexican soldiers and police have become common in areas CJNG controls.
'The group is not weaker than before, if anything it's stronger and we're still seeing expressions of this very direct violence against the state,' Dittmar told USA TODAY. 'They have been developing their arsenal with IEDs and have been attacking the Mexican army, forcing them to retreat from certain areas.'
Morales is survived by a 9-year-old boy and a 4-year-old girl.
Officer recounts surviving chopper attack
Morales was a police officer when cartel members gunned down the chopper he was aboard. His survival made him an icon of the fight against drugs and cartel violence in Mexico and the United States.
For him, it was about his child.
In 2019, Morales recounted surviving the fiery helicopter crash that left him severely burned and disfigured during an interview with the Louisville Courier Journal, part of the USA TODAY Network.
The special report on CJNG was part of a five-year investigation into the source of the drugs fueling the deadliest drug epidemic in American history. The powerful super cartel with more than 5,000 members is blamed, along with the infamous Sinaloa Cartel, for the bulk of fentanyl, cocaine and heroin that saturates the streets of Kentucky, Tennessee and other U.S. states.
The morning of the attack, Morales climbed into one of five military helicopters and headed out in the darkness to raid a CJNG compound in a rural area of the western state of Jalisco − known for its oceanside resort town of Puerto Vallarta. He and other federal police officers teamed with soldiers on a secret mission to arrest cartel boss El Mencho,
As the helicopters flew over a convoy of CJNG trucks and SUVs, cartel members fired grenade launchers and armor-piercing guns − including one obtained from a U.S. resident in Oregon − and sent Morales' helicopter careening into trees. Morales crawled through flames to escape, suffering significant burns. A fellow officer and several soldiers died.
Earlier that day, his then-fiancé told him she was pregnant with their first child.
The day of the helicopter crash, Morales knew he might die but repeatedly told the soldiers who hoisted him on a stretcher why he needed to survive: "I'm going to be a dad!"
Morales suffered second-degree and third-degree burns over 70% of his body and nearly died of organ failure in a Mexico City hospital. His pregnant fiancé kept a vigil beside him. Six weeks later, his son was born.
"Knowing I was going to be a dad motivated me a lot to fight," Morales said during the 2019 interview.
Morales was left disfigured and unable to return to work. Four years after the crash, he said it was difficult to cope with stares and whispers from strangers.
Some days, his then 3-year-old son would sit in his lap and trace burn scars with his little fingers and ask what happened. Morales would say he was hurt in an accident because he felt his son was too young to understand the ruthlessness of cartels. He said he dreaded the thought of one day having to tell him the truth.
What is CJNG?
The brazen show of violence in downing a military helicopter stunned law enforcement on both sides of the border and put them on notice how far CJNG's leader was willing to go to stop them.
Drug Enforcement Administration officials put boss El Mencho on its Most Wanted fugitive list and the State Department offered up to $15 million for information leading to his capture, now considered the world's most powerful cartel boss.
Justice Department authorities recently celebrated the extradition from Mexico of 29 cartel leaders. Among them was El Mencho's brother, Antonio Oseguera Cervantes, known as 'Tony Montana' – the name of Al Pacino's character in Scarface – and influential CJNG figure Erick Valencia. Both face charges in federal court in Washington, D.C.
But despite key arrests, the cartel boss remains at large and CJNG remains a powerful force.
'Even a key arrest is very replaceable,' said InSight expert Dittmar, a native of the state CJNG calls home. 'So in terms of demonstration of force, there's been no difference, if anything we've seen an increase.'
CJNG got its start as an offshoot of the Sinaloa Cartel specializing in producing methamphetamine, according to Dittmar. They are not as rich or powerful as the rival cartel but they inspire more widespread fears.
'Their use of violence is more offensive,' said Dittmar. 'The CJNG model is about expanding, taking territory and eliminating whatever group was there before.'
Cartel members post videos of themselves on social media riding rudimentary tanks, forcibly recruit foot soldiers and have transformed daily life in areas of Jalisco and surrounding states they control. People not only avoid going out at night but also have to be careful where they step during the day for fear of mines.
Scarred father was honored
Morales' scarred face was a reminder of government efforts.
He appeared at several events through the years and symbolized bravery in the daunting fight against powerful cartels. Then-Mexico President Enrique Peña Nieto honored Morales at a public ceremony.
Despite all that Morales lost, he said he had no regrets.
"I knew the risks," he said. "I was committed to doing my job."
Morales expressed optimism that El Mencho's reign would one day end.
"It is not hopeless."
Michael Loria is a breaking news reporter for USA TODAY. Beth Warren covers health care for The Tennessean, part of the USA TODAY Network.
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