El Universal and La Jornada (both Mexico City) 12/1/09
Protected witness assassinated
A man under witness protection of the Mexican Department of Justice (PGR) was assassinated in a Starbucks in Mexico City today. Edgar Enrique Bayardo del Villar, who had testified in a major political corruption scandal in 2008 was gunned down in the fashionable coffee shop by two men dressed in business suits who entered from a waiting SUV, killed Bayardo and wounded his bodyguard and an unidentified woman.
Bayardo was the second protected witness to die in the past few days in connection to the investigation of the Sinaloa drug cartel run by Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada. The other death, attributed to suicide by hanging, was of a nephew of "El Mayo" who was in protective custody of the PGR. [Photo relates.]
-------
El Financiero (Mexico City) 12/1/09
Panama strengthens efforts in drug war
Panama, a country that seizes about five percent of the world's cocaine production, inaugurated the first of 11 naval air stations to be dedicated to combat narcotraffic. This first station is located on an island in the Gulf of Panama. A joint task force made up of 55 members of the National Police, Border Service and Naval Air Service began their initial operations on Chapera Island, some 50 miles south of Panama City and one of the "hottest" in the Las Perlas Archipelago for drug trafficking from Colombia to the US. In addition to Chapera Island, the government will have naval air stations at Piña, Punta Coco, Mensabe, Coiba and Quebrada de Piedras on the Pacific side and Chiriqui Grande, Isla Colon, Sherman, El Porvenir and Puerto Obaldia on the Atlantic.
-------
Cuarto Poder (Chiapas) 12/1/09
Casual border enforcement
[Quoting] "Everything crosses the Mexico-Guatemala River. No one crosses through the international ports of entry. Before the eyes of the Customs, Immigration, Mexican Army and police from one side of the border to the other, everything crosses." The article goes on to describe the dozens of inner-tube rafts that forge across the Suchiate River every day and every hour, bringing diverse products. Nobody crosses through the official ports because this way they avoid being subjected to "severe inspection" by the authorities. Other than the ports, the rest of the southern border is "highly porous" and contraband crosses brazenly in sight of everyone and then with the protection and permission of authorities. [Photo relates.]
-------
La Jornada (Mexico City) 12/1/09
Remittances drop
Remittances sent from Mexicans living abroad to their families in Mexico fell 35.82% in October 2009 compared to October 2008, according to the Bank of Mexico. The remittances, one of the most important sources of currency in the country, amounted to nearly 1.7 billion US dollars in October. The estimated 10% drop in remittances for the year is believed due to the effects of the economic recession in the US where most of the Mexican migrants live. -------
-end of report-
The National Association of Former Border Patrol Officers (NAFBPO) extracts and condenses the material that follows from Mexican and Central and South American on-line media sources on a daily basis.
Comments at Right Side News are moderated, edited, and deleted at the discretion of the RSN administrator. Relevant and polite comments are very welcome. Comments that include inappropriate content, baseless accusations, name calling, links or language will be edited or removed. Inappropriate content includes that which is rude, vulgar, belligerent or otherwise irrelevant or that include links to sites that meet the same description. Spam is also deleted. There is a 1,000 character limit per comment. Longer comments can be submitted for review as an editorial on the "Submit Content" at the bottom of this page. Acceptance not guaranteed. Personal attacks against authors will not be posted.
Bayardo was the second protected witness to die in the past few days in connection to the investigation of the Sinaloa drug cartel run by Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada. The other death, attributed to suicide by hanging, was of a nephew of "El Mayo" who was in protective custody of the PGR. [Photo relates.]
[Quoting] "Everything crosses the Mexico-Guatemala River. No one crosses through the international ports of entry. Before the eyes of the Customs, Immigration, Mexican Army and police from one side of the border to the other, everything crosses." The article goes on to describe the dozens of inner-tube rafts that forge across the Suchiate River every day and every hour, bringing diverse products. Nobody crosses through the official ports because this way they avoid being subjected to "severe inspection" by the authorities. Other than the ports, the rest of the southern border is "highly porous" and contraband crosses brazenly in sight of everyone and then with the protection and permission of authorities. [Photo relates.]
