Man charged in 1995 murders of Marine brothers from Cicero, Illinois
Daniel Flores, 49, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of 22-year-old John Fields, and his 19-year-old brother, Michael Fields, on April 12, 1995.
Police found the two young men lying in the street along 50th Court. They each had multiple gunshot wounds and shortly after were pronounced dead.
"John Fields had recently completed his service with the United States Marine Corps, while Michael Fields, who had followed in his brother's footsteps, was actively serving in the Marines, and was home on furlough after completing a tour of duty in Japan," said Cicero Police Supt. Thomas Boyle.
Their case went cold for years until 2013, when police located a key witness. They said she knew enough about what happened to help them make the arrest.
"Previous detectives attempted for a long time to locate her, but she had a relationship with our person of interest at the time," said Francisco Diaz, deputy superintendent of investigations at the Cicero Police Department.
In 2021, the men's sister, Angela Fields,
spoke with CBS News Chicago
.
"It's very frustrating, because it's 26 years. It's like, okay, let's get him back here. Let's get this done," she said.
On Friday, she and her family stood teary-eyed as police finally announced charges.
Flores, a Mexican native, was arrested in Mexico in 2023, and after two years he was extradited back to the U.S.
"We're happy. We're happy that this can finally help the family of Michael and his brother to get closure on their losses," said LaDon Reynolds, the U.S. Marshal for the Northern District of Illinois.
Police said the shooting stemmed from an altercation, but would not elaborate on a motive for the murders.
Flores was ordered held in Cook County Jail while he awaits trial. He is due back in court on May 2 in Maywood.
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Los Angeles Times
2 hours ago
- Los Angeles Times
U.S. declines to pursue death penalty against trio of accused Mexican cartel kingpins
Federal authorities in the United States revealed Tuesday that they will not seek the death penalty against three reputed Mexican drug cartel leaders, including an alleged former partner of the infamous 'El Chapo' and the man accused of orchestrating the killing of a Drug Enforcement Administration agent. Court filings showed decisions handed down in the trio of prosecutions, all being held in Brooklyn, N.Y. The cases involve drug and conspiracy charges against Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada, 75, charged with running a powerful faction of Mexico's Sinaloa cartel; Rafael Caro Quintero, 72, who allegedly masterminded the DEA agent's torture and murder in 1985; and Vicente Carrillo Fuentes, 62, also known as El Viceroy, who is under indictment as the ex-boss of the Juarez cartel. Prosecutors from the Eastern District of New York filed a letter in each case 'to inform the Court and the defense that the Attorney General has authorized and directed this Office not to seek the death penalty.' The decision comes despite calls by President Trump use capital punishment against drug traffickers and the U.S. government ratcheting up pressure against Mexico to dismantle organized crime groups and to staunch the flow of fentanyl and other illicit drugs across the border. A White House spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. It's rare for the death penalty to be in play against high-level Mexican cartel figures. Mexico long ago abolished capital punishment and typically extradites its citizens on the condition they are spared death. In Zambada's case, the standard restrictions did not apply because he was not extradited. Zambada was brought to the U.S. last July by a son of his longtime associate, Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán. Zambada alleges he was ambushed and kidnapped in Sinaloa by Joaquín Guzmán López, who forced him onto an airplane bound for a small airport outside El Paso, Texas. Zambada has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him and remains jailed in Brooklyn while his case proceeds. A court filing in June said prosecutors and the defense had 'discussed the potential for a resolution short of trial,' suggesting plea negotiations are underway. Frank Perez, the lawyer representing Zambada, issued a statement Tuesday to The Times that said: 'We welcome the government's decision not to pursue the death penalty against our client. This marks an important step toward achieving a fair and just resolution.' Federal authorities announced in May that Guzmán López, 39, an accused leader of the Sinaloa cartel faction known as 'Los Chapitos,' would also not face the death penalty. He faces an array of drug smuggling and conspiracy charges in a case pending before the federal court in Chicago. Another son of El Chapo, Ovidio Guzmán López, 35, pleaded guilty to drug trafficking, money laundering and firearms charge last month in Chicago. Court filings show he has agreed to cooperate with U.S. authorities in other investigations. Caro Quintero and Carrillo Fuentes were two of the biggest names among a group of 29 men handed over by Mexico to the U.S. in February. The unusual mass transfer was conducted outside the typical extradition process, which left open the possibility of the death penalty. Reputed to be a founding member of Mexico's powerful Guadalajara cartel in the 1980s, Caro Quintero is allegedly responsible for the brutal slaying of DEA agent Enrique 'Kiki' Camarena 40 years ago. The killing, portrayed on the Netlfix show 'Narcos: Mexico' and recounted in many books and documentaries, led to a fierce response by U.S. authorities, but Caro Quintero managed to elude justice for decades. Getting him on U.S. soil was portrayed a major victory by Trump administration officials. Derek Maltz, the DEA chief in February, said in a statement that Caro Quintero had 'unleashed violence, destruction, and death across the United States and Mexico, has spent four decades atop DEA's most wanted fugitives list.' Carrillo Fuentes is perhaps best known as the younger brother of another Mexican drug trafficker, Amado Carrillo Fuentes, the legendary 'Lord of the Skies,' who died in 1997. Once close to El Chapo, El Mayo and other Sinaloa cartel leaders, the younger Carrillo Funtes split off to form his own cartel in the city of Juárez, triggering years of bloody cartel warfare. Kenneth J. Montgomery, the lawyer for Carrillo Fuentes, said Tuesday his client was 'extremely grateful' for the government's decision not to seek the death penalty.'I thought it was the right decision,' he said. 'In a civilized society, I don't think the death penalty should ever be an option.' Trump has been an ardent supporter of capital punishment. In January, he signed an order that directs the attorney general to 'take all necessary and lawful action' to ensure that states have enough lethal injection drugs to carry out executions. Trump's order directed the attorney general to pursue the death penalty in cases that involve the killing of law enforcement officers, among other factors. For years, Trump has loudly called for executing convicted drug traffickers. He reiterated the call for executions again in 2022 when announcing his intent to run again for president. 'We're going to be asking [that] everyone who sells drugs, gets caught selling drugs, to receive the death penalty for their heinous acts,' Trump said. Atty. Gen. Pam Bondi lifted a moratorium on federal executions in February, reversing a policy that began under the Biden administration. In April, Bondi announced intentions to seek the death penalty against Luigi Mangione, the man charged with assassinating a UnitedHealthcare executive in New York City. Bonnie Klapper, a former federal narcotics prosecutor in the Eastern District of New York, reacted with surprise upon learning that the Trump administration had decided not to pursue capital cases against the accused kingpins, particularly Caro Quintero. Klapper, who is now a defense attorney, speculated that Mexico is strongly opposed to executions of its citizens and officials may have exerted diplomatic pressure to spare the lives of the three men, perhaps offering to send more kingpins in the future. 'While my initial reaction is one of shock given this administration's embrace of the death penalty, perhaps there's conversations taking place behind the scenes in which Mexico has said, 'If you want more of these, you can't ask to kill any of our citizens.''
NBC News
2 hours ago
- NBC News
U.S. won't seek death penalty for Mexican drug lords Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada and Rafael Caro Quintero
NEW YORK — U.S. prosecutors said Tuesday they won't seek the death penalty in their cases against Mexican cartel kingpin Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada and Rafael Caro Quintero, the drug lord charged with orchestrating the 1985 killing of a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent. Caro Quintero, 72, and Zambada, 75, have pleaded not guilty to an array of drug trafficking charges. The prosecutions are separate, but they similarly target two of Mexico's most notorious narcos. It is unclear whether taking the death penalty off the table signals any possibility of a plea deal with either or both men. Zambada's lawyer, Frank Perez, said only that the government's decision "marks an important step toward achieving a fair and just resolution." Prosecutors said last winter that they were having plea discussions with Zambada's lawyer. Prosecutors wouldn't comment further Tuesday after unveiling their death-penalty decision in brief letters to judges. A request for comment was sent to Caro Quintero's lawyer. The cases are unfolding in the same Brooklyn federal courthouse where infamous Sinaloa cartel co-founder Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán was tried and convicted. The Sinaloa cartel is Mexico's oldest criminal group, with various incarnations dating to the 1970s. It is a drug trafficking power player: A former Mexican cabinet member was convicted of taking bribes to help the cartel. Guzmán and Zambada built it from a regional group into a huge manufacturer and smuggler of cocaine, heroin and other illicit drugs to the U.S., authorities say. While Zambada was seen as the cartel's strategist and dealmaker, prosecutors have said he also was enmeshed in its violence, at one point ordering the murder of his own nephew. Zambada avoided capture for years, until he was arrested in Texas last year, after what he has described as a kidnapping in Mexico. One of Guzmán's sons, Joaquin Guzmán Lopez, was arrested with Zambada and has pleaded not guilty in a Chicago federal court. Caro Quintero headed the Guadalajara cartel, parts of which later merged into the Sinaloa organization. The White House has called him "one of the most evil cartel bosses in the world." Prosecutors say he is responsible for sending tons of heroin, methamphetamine, marijuana and cocaine into the U.S. and had DEA agent Enrique "Kiki" Camarena abducted, tortured and killed as revenge for a marijuana plantation raid. The killing was dramatized in the Netflix series "Narcos: Mexico."
NBC News
6 hours ago
- NBC News
Hundreds of alleged human rights abuses in immigrant detention, report finds
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Another detainee at an immigration processing center in Louisiana, who was six months pregnant, told Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-Mass., while the congresswoman was visiting the facility that she nearly miscarried twice after being detained, according to a report cited in the investigation. Another case included in the report came to Ossoff's attention when the partner of a pregnant detainee in Georgia, who had just miscarried, contacted his office asking for help getting information after two days of not hearing from her. Meredyth Yoon, an immigration attorney and litigation director at Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Atlanta, told NBC News she met with the pregnant detainee from Georgia, a 23-year-old Mexican national whose name is being withheld to protect her and her family's privacy. According to Yoon and the Georgia detainee's partner, who spoke to Ossoff's office, the woman began bleeding heavily about a week after medical staff at the detention center confirmed in mid-March that she was pregnant with what would have been her first child. The woman was taken to a hospital, where she miscarried. A day later, she was returned to the detention center. After she requested a doctor because she was still in pain, her partner got concerned because he had not heard from her for two days, prompting the call to the senator's office. According to an immigration case status document obtained by NBC News, the woman received a follow-up medical checkup April 9, 11 days after she miscarried. There, she reported feeling 'pelvic pain' and having 'moderate' bleeding. In the document, an immigration officer said she was receiving medication for her pain and described her medical condition as 'very stable.' The detainee who miscarried described to Yoon witnessing and experiencing 'horrific' and 'terrible conditions,' the attorney said, including allegations of overcrowding, people forced to sleep on the floor, inadequate access to nutrition and medical care, as well as abusive treatment by the guards, lack of information about their case and limited ability to contact their loved ones and legal support. Attorneys have reported that their pregnant clients in DHS custody have waited weeks to see a doctor and had their scheduled appointments canceled, according to the investigation. 'Regardless of our views on immigration policy, the American people do not support the abuse of detainees and more important than ever to shine a light on what's happening behind bars and barbed wire, especially and most shockingly to children,' Ossoff told NBC News in a statement about the investigation. In response to an NBC News request for comment about the report's allegations, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in an email, 'Any claim that there are subprime conditions at ICE detention centers are false.' According to her, all detainees who are in Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody are provided with 'proper meals, medical treatment, and have opportunities to communicate with lawyers and their family members.' She stated that from the moment they arrive at an ICE detention facility, detainees undergo medical, dental and mental health intake screenings, as well as follow-up health assessments and have access to 24-hour emergency care. 'Ensuring the safety, security, and well-being of individuals in our custody is a top priority at ICE,' McLaughlin said. She said it was 'irresponsible' to report on the allegations from the pregnant detainee in Georgia whose name is being withheld, adding these 'FALSE' claims contribute to the 'demonization' of immigration officers. NBC News has reviewed immigration records to verify the identity and medical status of the Georgia detainee. According to the report, in at least three instances, children experienced severe medical issues while in detention and were denied adequate medical treatment, the report states. One of them is a case NBC News first reported in March. An 11-year-old U.S. citizen girl recovering from a rare brain tumor was denied medical care and allegedly kept ' in deplorable conditions' while in immigration custody with her noncitizen parents, according to a civil rights complaint filed by the girl's family. Another allegation involved a 4-year-old U.S. citizen boy with stage 4 cancer who was removed to Honduras without access to his medicines when immigration authorities deported his mother in April. Ossoff's office did not send the report to DHS in advance, but had previously inquired about some of the cases in recent oversight letters to DHS. When speaking to Ossoff's office, attorneys alleged that guards at an immigration processing center in El Paso, Texas, nearly broke a male detainee's wrists after he was slammed against the ground and handcuffed 'for stepping out of line in the dining hall.' They also reported allegations that staff at a Customs and Border Protection facility used 'stress positions' to punish at least seven detainees for 'laughing and conversing.' At least two 911 calls in March and April from another processing center in California referenced reports of threats and sexual assault. Four other emergency calls reported similar allegations out of a processing center in South Texas, according to a report cited in the investigation. For the investigation, Ossoff's staff said it interviewed dozens of people including correctional workers, law enforcement officials, attorneys, doctors and nurses, as well as 46 immigration detainees and their families. Cases were also identified through a review of public reports and court records, as well as inspections of six immigration facilities in Texas and Georgia, the report states. Ossoff's office cited obstruction of congressional oversight by DHS as a factor limiting their ability to visit more sites and interview more detainees, the report states. DHS did not directly respond to the senator's obstruction allegations when NBC News asked for a response. Last month, NBC News reported on similar allegations to those in Ossoff's report coming from immigration advocates and detainees held in detention centers across California, Texas, Louisiana, Washington, New Jersey, Florida and New York. They described experiencing hunger, food shortages, sickness and denial of access to attorneys. DHS has previously denied all allegations of inhumane conditions at immigration detention centers across the nation, as well as food scarcity allegations.
