WOMEN TAKE OVER MEXICAN DRUG CARTELS

MEXICO CITY -- Women are now in charge of two of Mexico's biggest drug
cartels, a high-ranking police commander was quoted Wednesday as saying.

In an interview published in La Jornada daily, the head of the attorney
general's organized crime unit (UEDO), Joe Luis Santiago Vasconcelos, said
control of the Tijuana and Colima cartels, run by the Arellano Felix and
Amezcua Contreras families, respectively, has been turned over to the
sisters of the former leaders who have either been imprisoned or killed.

The notoriously violent Tijuana cartel is one of main groups responsible
for smuggling cocaine into the United States, while the Colima cartel is
one of the main suppliers of amphetamines to Mexico's northern neighbor.

The Arellano Felix organization had been led by brothers Ramon and Benjamin
until Ramon was shot to death by police in February and his brother was
arrested a month later. Their sister Enedina has since taken over.

The sisters of Colima cartel leaders Luis Ignacio, Jesus and Adan Amezcua
Contreras have taken over for their brothers, who are in prison,
Vasconcelos explained.

The presence of women in drug cartels was brought to light when Delia
Buendia, also known as "Ma Barker," was arrested on Aug. 20. She was
considered the head of the Neza cartel, the most important drug-trafficking
organization in the central state of Mexico, at the time of her arrest.

In recent years, Vasconcelos noted, the profile of the typical Mexican drug
smuggler has undergone considerable changes.

"We find them living in middle-class neighborhoods, trying to blend into
the crowd. Now they are more sophisticated. Globalization and competition
have increased, and that requires more preparation in all areas and more
sophistication," he said. (EFE News Service)