SUSPECTED DRUG BARON CHARGED IN 10 SLAYINGS

Already accused of running a multimillion-dollar criminal enterprise, one
of Mexico's alleged most powerful drug barons now faces murder charges in
the deaths of 10 people, including seven whose remains were found in graves
in Ciudad Juarez last year.

The U.S. attorney in El Paso announced Thursday that the murder charges
against Vicente Carrillo Fuentes are part of a new 46-count federal indictment.

The murder charges are the first filed by federal authorities in the
Western District of Texas against Mr. Carrillo Fuentes, who remains a
fugitive despite a nearly 3-year-old extradition request. Officials say he
controls virtually all drug-trafficking activities in Juarez and
neighboring El Paso.

"He is our Number 1 drug target, and upon his arrest and ultimate
extradition, he will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law," said
Daryl Fields, a spokesman for the U.S. attorney in El Paso. "He is our
Number 1 target, and we want him."

Although the slayings occurred in Mexico, federal statutes provide for
extraterritorial jurisdiction in matters involving criminal enterprises,
officials said.

Mexican officials also filed drug-trafficking charges against the
37-year-old, said Jose Larrietta Carrasco, Mexico's deputy attorney
general. Mr. Larrietta Carrasco acknowledged that corruption in law
enforcement may be the reason why Mexican authorities have not apprehended
Mr. Carrillo Fuentes. The recent arrests in Mexico City of two military
generals accused of providing protection to the Juarez cartel support that
charge.

"There are bad elements," he said.

The whereabouts of Mr. Carrillo Fuentes, brother of the late drug lord
Amado Carrillo Fuentes, remain a mystery.

"We have no concrete information," Mr. Larrietta Carrasco said.

The slain victims included three U.S. citizens and one permanent resident,
all from El Paso.

Their remains were retrieved from ranches on the outskirts of Juarez during
an unprecedented joint operation by Mexican and U.S. authorities last year
that included 65 FBI agents and 600 Mexican military and federal judicial
police.

The case attracted international attention because it initially dealt with
mass graves supposedly filled with 100 or more bodies.

The remains of nine people were found at three sites. In addition to the
three U.S. citizens and one permanent resident, the others identified
included two Mexicans and one Colombian. The identities of two other bodies
remain unknown.

In addition to the slayings of the seven identified individuals, the
indictment also charges Mr. Carrillo Fuentes with ordering the murders of a
former head of the Juarez state police and his two sons. The three bodies
were found in 1994 in an abandoned vehicle on one of the international
bridges linking Juarez and El Paso.

All 10 murders apparently were ordered to ensure silence about criminal
activities, which authorities say generate more than $300 million in profits.

"They were all somehow tied to the drug business," said Edmundo Guevara,
special agent in charge of the FBI in El Paso. "Vicente had them killed
because he believed they had or could have cooperated with authorities."

Authorities said Mr. Carrillo Fuentes assumed control of the Juarez drug
cartel soon after the death of his brother Amado on July 4, 1997, following
a botched plastic surgery to change his appearance. Amado Carrillo Fuentes
was nicknamed "Lord of the Skies" because of his alleged use of aircraft to
ship drugs.

His death spurred a violent turf war in Juarez. In 1998, another alleged
drug baron, Rafael MuF1oz Talavera, was found inside a sports utility
vehicle. His body was riddled with bullets, beaten and wrapped in plastic.
Mr. MuF1oz Talavera was jockeying to take over the cartel when he was
slain, officials said.

Although the violence continues, it is believed that Vicente Carrillo
Fuentes has gained control.

"In this area, he is the priority target in us trying to apprehend and
dismantle his organization," said Robert Castillo, special agent in charge
of the Drug Enforcement Administration in El Paso. "He controls this area."

One month following his brother's death, a grand jury issued a 27-count
indictment against Vicente Carrillo Fuentes on charges of distributing tons
of cocaine and marijuana, plus conducting money-laundering activities.

Drugs were smuggled from Juarez and Ojinaga, Mexico, and stashed in safe
houses in West Texas before being moved on to Dallas, Chicago and New York,
according to the original indictment.

The superseding indictment, unsealed this week, charges Mr. Carrillo
Fuentes with 10 counts of murder in furtherance of a criminal enterprise
and nine counts of ordering the killing of individuals to prevent
communication of information by them to United States law-enforcement officers.

In addition to the murder counts, Mr. Carrillo Fuentes is charged with
importing and distributing thousands of kilograms of cocaine and marijuana
into the United States. More than 19,000 kilograms of cocaine and nearly
7,000 pounds of marijuana seized since 1985 have been linked to his
organization.

The indictment seeks the criminal forfeiture of almost $314 million, a
figure based on profits generated by drug sales from the alleged criminal
enterprise.

An arrest warrant and extradition request for Mr. Carrillo Fuentes was
initially filed in November 1997.

If he is ever caught and convicted in the United States, Mr. Carrillo
Fuentes faces either life imprisonment or the death penalty on the murder
charges.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.