'WANTED' SIGNS FOR CARTEL LEADERS WILL RETURN, OFFICIALS SAY

SAN YSIDRO -- The Arellano Felix brothers have been hard to pin down, even
on FBI "wanted" signs posted last year at the border checkpoint.

Sunlight bleached two sets of the signs, which were supposed to draw
attention to the alleged drug cartel ringleaders, Ramon and Benjamn
Arellano Felix. The brothers are said to control most of drug trade along
the western Mexican border.

The damaged signs were removed a few months ago. But they'll reappear in
the next few weeks -- for good, officials hope -- with ink that is more
resistant to the sun, said FBI spokeswoman Jan Caldwell.

The symbolism of the fading, then disappearing, bilingual signs wasn't lost
on some Mexicans, who saw the FBI's effort as a simple but decisive step by
U.S. authorities to stand up to the cartel.

"When they put up the signs, it seemed like they were taking this
seriously, and then suddenly the signs weren't there and it makes you
wonder what is happening," said Adela Navarro Bello, an editor with the
Tijuana weekly Zeta, which frequently crusades against the cartels.

Caldwell said it was nature -- not negligence -- that prompted the signs to
be removed.

"We take this very seriously, and we know that a lot of attention will be
paid to these signs," she said. "We are trying to make these cartel members
as public as possible so people will call."

Ramon Arellano Felix has been on the FBI's 10 Most Wanted List for more
than three years, and both brothers were named in a federal indictment
unsealed in San Diego last year. It accused them of ordering murders and
kidnappings throughout Mexico.

Most of the Arellano "wanted" signs have been placed in government
buildings, such as post offices and police stations. But the signs are more
visible at the border, where about 1.2 million vehicles cross into Mexico
through San Ysidro each month. As they wait at the checkpoint, drivers have
time to reflect on the brothers' faces and memorize the hotline number for
tips: (800) 720-7775.

U.S. authorities have offered up to $2 million for information leading to
the brothers' arrest and conviction. The two have reportedly been seen in
Mexico, the United States and Europe.

Caldwell hopes the posters' return will lead to the brothers' capture.

"We have some of the best investigators in the world, . . . but it takes
that one call to get the job done," she said.