MEXICO SAYS ARRESTS SON OF ALLEGED CARTEL HITMAN

TIJUANA, Mexico (Reuters) - Mexican federal police arrested the son of an
alleged hitman for the Tijuana drug cartel on charges of drug distribution,
the Attorney General's Office (PGR) said late Wednesday.

Ismael Higuera Avila, son of alleged assassin Ismael Higuera, alias ``El
Mayel'', was arrested with three other suspected members of the cartel in a
secret joint operation with the army in the city of Ensenada on Tuesday, the
PGR said.

The elder Higuera has been one of the most wanted members of the violent
Tijuana drug cartel, operated by the Arellano Felix brothers. The alleged
hitman is suspected in the 1993 murder of Roman Catholic Cardinal Juan
Posadas Ocampo and an attack on crusading anti-drugs magazine editor Jesus
Blancornelas.

The PGR said it seized unspecified amounts of heroin and marijuana in the
arrests. In addition to Higuera Avila, the PGR said it captured Carlos
Gonzalez, a Baja California state police officer suspected of aiding the cartel.

U.S. and Mexican officials have said the Arellano Felix organization is the
top target of anti-drug efforts. Brothers Ramon, Benjamin and Javier
Arellano Felix have million-dollar rewards on their heads in Mexico and
Ramon has been on the U.S. FBI's 10 most wanted list.

Checked-by: Melodi Cornett