'HERE WE ARE PRISONERS'

NUEVO LAREDO, Mexico - The gunfire was deafening. Street corners all
over the city were darkened by smoke from grenades and light artillery.

The dead lay in pools of blood flowing into the gutters that drain
into the Rio Grande.

Men with automatic assault rifles stood stoic after the carnage.
Then, one by one, they picked up the bodies of their victims, threw
them into the back of pickup trucks and headed out of downtown.

Bystanders hid inside shops, behind trash bins - wherever they could
find refuge from the explosive showdown between members of rival drug cartels.

"(I watched as) the men threw the bodies into the back of the trucks
and SUVs," whispered Manuel, who was working at a parking garage that
day. "This city is controlled from the inside out by the cartels. ...
They are killing anyone who gets in their way."

The April street violence, witnessed by several residents interviewed
by The Sun's sister newspaper, the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin of
Ontario, was but one recent example of how Mexico's cartels are
fighting each other over the four major U.S. highway systems that
provide transit routes into the United States.

Street violence has become a way of life for the nearly 380,000
residents of Mexico's most violent border city. According to
law-enforcement officials in Mexico and U.S. Drug Enforcement
Administration officials, more than 500 people were assassinated in
Nuevo Laredo in 2005. Official estimates, in news reports, put the
2005 death toll at 186.

This year, there have been nearly 500 assassinations, and the death
toll continues to rise. Many of the dead either belonged to the
cartels or were innocent victims of the carnage.

The violence has also changed the lives of American citizens living
in Laredo, on the Texas side of the border, where kidnappings,
narcotics trafficking and corruption have become common.

Laredo Police Officer James Boyd, who used to travel to Nuevo Laredo
on archaeological projects, is now terrified to enter the city.

This year on a trip into Nuevo Laredo, he said he was chased by four
SUVs and his car shot at several times by cartel members.

"People should know that the border has been taken hostage by the
cartels," Boyd said. "So many officials try to cover up what's going
on. Why? I guess they don't want the public to know the truth."

The truth is tied up in trucks, trade and transcontinental smuggling.

The World Trade Bridge between Nuevo Laredo and its sister city,
Laredo, as well as Interstate 35 and highways 59, 359 and 83, are
like veins feeding the Mexican syndicates, running from south Texas
to as far north as Canada.

For Mexico's most powerful drug lords, controlling the routes and
protecting the cargo sent along them - drugs, weapons and people - is
worth the cost in lives.

It's also reason to focus U.S. border patrol efforts sharply on Nuevo
Laredo, say law-enforcement officials, since the city is the largest
inland port from Mexico into the United States and is a major point
of origin for truck traffic into the U.S.

"Those who control Nuevo Laredo control the U.S. highways and the
flow of narcotics into the United States," said Sheriff Rick Flores,
whose Webb County territory runs along the Texas-Mexico border.

"This city is an open gateway for narcotics and terrorists," Flores
said. "If the price is right, anyone - and I mean anyone - can move
weapons of mass destruction, people and drugs into the United States."

Not one local Mexican or U.S. newspaper reported the April street
violence. Reporters don't go into Nuevo Laredo's streets often, and
when they do, they don't report on the cartels.

Not one Nuevo Laredo municipal police officer ever appeared at the
scene, either.

It was as if the bloodbath never happened.

Cartel culture

Comandante Enrique Sanchez of the Nuevo Laredo Police Department said
he couldn't recall the April shootings, although he compared the
violence in Nuevo Laredo to that in Iraq.

His department has been plagued by trouble. President Vicente Fox's
administration has described the city's police as corrupt, and
residents said many police officers work for the Gulf Cartel, one of
Mexico's most powerful narcotics-trafficking organizations.

"You never know when the bullets are going to come flying," Sanchez
said during a recent tour of the city by pickup. His men, officers
Roberto Zepeda, 23, and Jose Santos, 28, stood in the bed of the
police vehicle, AR-15 rifles pointed toward the streets. "You never
know when you're going to die."

The dead are often forgotten. The cartels dispose of bodies on the
outskirts of the city in vats of acid, mutilate them in factory
machines, feed them to animals or set them ablaze in gas containers
until all evidence of their existence is gone.

Not one of the city's nearly 400 official murders since January 2005
has been solved.

"The attention that the assassinations have brought to the cartels
has caused them to change their tactics," said Nacho, a resident who
sometimes assists U.S. law enforcement with information. "The bodies
are destroyed before people even realize someone's missing."

Although Colombian cartels control most of the world's production of
cocaine and heroin, the most profitable part of the trade - transport
to the U.S. - happens in Mexico, said Jorge Chabat, a drug expert at
the Center for Economic Research and Teaching in Mexico City.

Distribution of narcotics has come under the control of various
Mexican cartels, Chabat said, including Osiel Cardenas' Gulf Cartel;
Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman's Sinaloa Cartel; Francisco Javier Arellano
Felix's organization in Tijuana; and the Juarez Cartel, said to be
led by Vicente Carrillo.

A woman who asked to be called only Lupita for her protection, and
who grew up with family members of several of the city's original
narcotics organizations, remembers them all.

Lupita, who works with law enforcement, also remembers a time when
Nuevo Laredo was at peace, and recalled the moment everything changed.

More than 10 years ago, the city was mainly controlled by two
narcotics organizations, Flores Soto and Los Chachos, Lupita said.
Mario Flores Soto, the leader of Flores Soto, joined forces with the
Gulf Cartel to expand his revenue and power. The Gulf Cartel wanted
control of Laredo's highway systems. Flores Soto shared the city's
transit routes with the cartel, pulling narcotics revenue away from
Dionicio "El Chacho" Ramon Garcia, the leader of Los Chachos.

Los Chachos members were enraged, Lupita said, and kidnapped and
killed Mario Flores Soto's youngest brother, Roy, and 10 of his associates.

In retaliation for the kidnappings and murders, the Gulf Cartel's
paramilitary arm, Los Zetas - a group of more than 30
special-operations soldiers, deserters from the Mexican military -
assassinated many of the key members of Los Chachos. It wasn't long
before the surviving members of the Chachos wanted revenge, Lupita said.

"They took Dionicio, the leader, murdered him and left him in women's
underwear for everyone to see," she said.

El Chacho, who was assassinated in May 2002, was on his way back from
Monterrey, a city reportedly under the control of the Sinaloa Cartel,
another of Mexico's most powerful narcotics organizations.

"The violence kept growing, and the methods for killing just keep
getting worse," Lupita said.

Osiel Cardenas, the leader of the Gulf Cartel, was arrested on March
14, 2003, in Matamoros, Mexico. Since then, Los Zetas has been
running the organization, according to sources interviewed by the
Daily Bulletin.

The Sinaloa Cartel is attempting to take control of the Gulf Cartel
away from Los Zetas, and is said to have the backing of many
politicians and federal law-enforcement officials within Mexico.

"The reason the government never intervened (to stop the violence) is
because many of the government officials from Mexico City to Nuevo
Laredo are in the pocket of the cartels," Lupita said.

"Once the killing began, it never stopped. The hatred between the
narcos grew stronger and stronger."

'This used to be a good place'

Nacho, whose last name is being withheld for his safety, has lived in
Nuevo Laredo most of his adult life. He is a father, husband and one
of the few people willing to share the dark secrets of his city.

Although he has family in the United States, he refuses to cross the
border illegally to escape the danger.

"I have applied for a visa," he said. "My family already lives in
fear. We don't want to escape to live illegally as fugitives.

"People need to know the truth (about Nuevo Laredo)," he continued.
"This used to be a good place. Now it is a danger to anyone who enters."

Nacho parked his car near a town square. It was once a lovers'
walkway where he courted his wife. Now, only a handful of people
frequent its winding sidewalks or sit on its iron benches.

"I remember it being so crowded with people, and the fresh fruit,
taquitos and ice-cream vendors," Nacho recalled.

When the violence in Nuevo Laredo reached a peak in June, the Fox
administration began Operation Secure Mexico, sending in Mexican
military and other federal law-enforcement agencies.

"There are very clear signs of a relationship between elements of the
Nuevo Laredo police and drug smuggling, hence the decisive action,"
government spokesman Ruben Aguilar told journalists in June.

But by the end of July, the streets were empty of military.

Comandante Sanchez chuckled when asked what happened to the Mexican
military who were supposed to be protecting the city.

"That's a good question," he said, a sardonic smile creasing his
face. "Where are they?"

Sanchez explained that most of the troops were as afraid for their
lives as Nuevo Laredo's police and citizens. Some simply left and
didn't return. Others, already in the pockets of the cartels, made an
early show of enforcement, then disappeared.

Nacho said the Mexican government sent the military to appease the
U.S. government, "then pulled them out of the city just as fast."

While he was speaking, a man in shabby clothes stood in the middle of
the street, watching Nacho's car. A Nextel phone hung from the man's waistband.

"All over the city, there are halcones or ventanas (falcons or
windows)," Nacho said. "They are the eyes and the ears of the cartels."

The man directed Nacho's car into an empty parking space.

"Never forget to tip," Nacho said as he handed a peseta to the man.
"Never forget that everybody, no matter how nice they are or what
they look like, could be working for the cartels.

'Nothing has changed'

"Silver or lead," said the middle- aged, white-haired man as he
sipped a martini at a hotel bar in Laredo. "That's the code in
Mexico. Either you pay up or you're killed."

James Kuykendall Sr., a former special agent with the U.S. Drug
Enforcement Administration who now runs his own business in the city,
knows Mexico well.

His friend and DEA partner, Enrique "Kiki" Camarena, was kidnapped,
tortured and murdered by the drug cartels in 1985 while working
undercover in Guadalajara. His death brought national attention to
the Mexican drug war and the corruption that plagued the Mexican government.

Kuykendall's book, "O Plata O Plomo," ("Silver or Lead") published
last year, focused on the events surrounding Camarena's death and how
the Mexican government failed to cooperate with the DEA in the investigation.

"Nothing has changed in Mexico. If anything, it's worse," Kuykendall said.

"Kiki died a hero. He gave his life for his country. The tragedy is
that the U.S. government gave up on the war on drugs decades ago.
They choose to ignore the corruption that is deeply embedded in the
Mexican government."

The arrests of some of Mexico's most notorious drug traffickers - the
recent capture of reputed drug kingpin Francisco Javier Arellano
Felix being one example - are just the tip of the iceberg when it
comes to cooperation, Kuykendall added.

"Every once in a while, Mexico throws us a bone," he said. "It gives
the appearance of cooperation. It's a way of making everything look
like it's OK. Well, it's not."

Bazookas, bullets

Nacho ran his palm over a wall in a home that had been blasted by a
bazooka. Bullet holes riddled the interior of the house.

The cartels don't just use guns, he said. They have grenades, bombs
and a variety of other weapons.

"This house was rented by a group of assassins with the Sinaloa
Cartel," Nacho said. The assassins were sent to the city to kill
members of Los Zetas, he added.

Old mattresses, cigarette boxes and empty beer bottles were the only
traces of the gunmen's presence. A brick fence running alongside the
house had been blown apart with such force that the bricks were
nothing but crumbled dust.

"Sometimes I just can't believe what's happened to this city," Nacho said.

Around the corner from the home, an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe,
Mexico's patron saint, loomed over the neighborhood. Fresh flowers
and candles stood at the base of a portrait painted on the brick wall.

"She will bring us peace," said a young girl, smiling as she walked past Nacho.

Just a few yards away, a group of young men with Nextel phones made
it clear Nacho was in the wrong part of town. They only had to look at him.

"We better go," he said. "It's not good to stand around here for too
long. There are many good people in this city, but you never know."

'We are prisoners'

Hector cut some cilantro and dropped it into a small bowl. He is the
only vendor left at a small placita near the center of town, and his
10-year-old business is barely surviving the violence.

"I remember when I couldn't keep up with the tourists," he said as he
put freshly cooked carnitas into a tortilla. The smell of cilantro,
onions and pork filled the air.

"I used to have a lot of competition. Now I'm the only one left at
the square, and I make less than half of what I used to make."

Nuevo Laredo once was noted for its tourism, colorful street vendors
and booming border economy. But the drug violence has made this city
of 400,000 a wasteland of lost businesses and lost lives.

More than 100 businesses have moved from Nuevo Laredo to Laredo over
the past three years. And while its Texas sister is reaping the
rewards of the World Trade Bridge and a growing economy, Nuevo Laredo
residents are struggling to make ends meet.

Roll-down security shutters cover the large display windows of shops
in the artisan district near the border. Dental offices and
pharmacies that once thrived off American consumers have closed
because the violence is keeping those customers away. For Sale and
For Rent signs posted on the closed doors are pointed reminders of
what the city has become.

"In Laredo, life is different," Hector said. "Here we are prisoners.
In our city, we learn to live with the devil." CARTEL KINGS

Francisco Javier Arellano Felix: Was considered one of Mexico's most
dangerous cartel leaders until he was captured off the coast of Baja
California on Aug. 16, while on a fishing excursion. The
Arellano-Felix family, which is extensive, is said to still control
billions of dollars in cocaine, heroin and marijuana shipments to the
United States.

Dionicio Ramon Garcia: Known as "El Chacho," Ramon Garcia was the
leader of Los Chachos of Nuevo Laredo. He aligned himself with the
Sinaloa Cartel, then was tortured and murdered by Sinaloa's rival,
the Gulf Cartel, in May 2002. The Gulf Cartel dressed his dead body
in women's undergarments to humiliate his family and the group.

Joaquin Guzman: Known as "El Chapo," he is considered one of Mexico's
most powerful cartel leaders. Guzman heads the Sinaloa Cartel, which
has been in a fierce battle with the Gulf Cartel for control of the
Nuevo Laredo border. His organization has expanded and developed
alliances with other drug lords across Mexico. Those alliances are
known as the "Federation" or "Golden Triangle." Guzman is believed to
have the support of corrupt Mexican government officials.

Vicente Carrillo Fuentes: Head of the Juarez Cartel, and the
right-hand man to Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman of the Sinaloa Cartel. He
is wanted for murder, money laundering, narcotics trafficking and a
slew of other crimes. The U.S. State Department is offering a

$5 million reward for information leading to his arrest and conviction.

Osiel Cardenas Guillen: Leader of the Gulf Cartel, otherwise known as
the Cardenas-Guillen family, which controls most of the Mexico-Texas
border. The cartel is based in Nuevo Laredo. Cardenas Guillen was
arrested on March 14, 2003. According to DEA intelligence officials,
he continues to run his operation from his cell at the
maximum-security Las Palmas prison outside Mexico City.

Arturo Martinez: "El Tejas" operates out of Nuevo Laredo. His cartel,
Los Tejas, banded with the Gulf Cartel and forced his former partner,
Dionicio "El Chacho" Garcia to align with Sinaloa. Martinez still
controls large areas of Nuevo Laredo.

Gregorio Sauceda Gamboa: Part of the Gulf Cartel. Sauceda, known as
"El Goyo," controls most of the Mexican border areas of Reynosa and
Matamoros. Gamboa married into the Cardenas family. According to
intelligence officials, a rift developed between him and Cardenas
over his drug use and alcoholism. This month, he was demoted from
deputy in the cartel.

Armando Valencia: Valencia, whose cartel is known as Los Valencias,
was captured in 2003 in Mexico. Los Valencias still has strong ties
to Colombian cocaine traffickers, and the organization has remained
strong after aligning with the Sinaloa Cartel. The cartel uses the
port of Lazaro Cardenas to move cocaine and other narcotics into
Mexico. Members of the organization also are suspected of selling
narcotics in the United States.

Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada: El Mayo's organization is based out of the
resort city of Mazatlan, but has substantial control of the Mexican
border state of Sonora. El Mayo is considered a powerful cartel
leader, and his alliance with "El Chapo" Guzman has extended their
power all along the U.S.-Mexico border. In 2003, his organization was
a target of a U.S.-Mexico drug sting, Operation Trifecta, which
lasted 19 months and led to 240 arrests. "El Mayo" was never found
and is a fugitive wanted by both countries.

[sidebar]

BY THE NUMBERS

86,000

Transportation jobs created as a result of the World Trade Bridge.

$300 million

Amount Wal-Mart and Hutchison Port oldings Group, a Hong Kong-based
importer, have invested in the port at Lazaro Cardenas.

$10 million

Value of drugs entering the United States each day over the World Trade Bridge.

Less than 5%

Portion of the 6million cargo containers entering the United States
that are physically inspected.

186

Death toll by assassination in Nuevo Laredo in 2005, according to news outlets.

500+

Death toll by assassination in Nuevo Laredo in 2005, according to
officials in Mexico and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.

$2,500-$12,000

Estimated per-person cost charged by Mexican criminal groups to
smuggle someone into the United States. Price varies depending on the
origin point of the person being smuggled.