HomeNewsBriefReports Shed Light on Guatemala Drug Trafficker's Regional Links
BRIEF

Reports Shed Light on Guatemala Drug Trafficker's Regional Links

GUATEMALA / 11 NOV 2014 BY MARGUERITE CAWLEY EN

The criminal history of the drug trafficker who reportedly inherited the network once run by crime lord "Juan Chamale" sheds light on the ties between Central America's top criminal groups, and how these links facilitate drug trafficking throughout the region. 

International authorities accuse 59-year-old Sebastiana Hortencia Cotton Vasquez, alias "Tana" or "Doña," of trafficking 40 tons of US-bound cocaine through Central America. She was arrested in southern Mexico on October 8 and reportedly worked with the Sinaloa Cartel

Investigators in Nicaragua have said she is the heir to the criminal group once led by extradited Guatemalan drug lord Juan Alberto Ortiz Lopez, alias "Juan Chamale," according to La Prensa Grafica. After Chamale's capture, Vasquez was allegedly deeply involved in the operations of the Nicaraguan criminal group "Los Charros." In 2012, the group was linked to the murder of a famous Argentine folk singer, and in 2013, 13 members were sentenced for drug trafficking.

Vasquez also has alleged ties to the Valles drug trafficking organization in Honduras -- whose top leadership was recently captured -- and to the network of Salvadoran kingpin Jorge Ulloa Sibrian, alias "Repollo," who was detained in Guatemala in 2013 and is currently on trial in his home country. 

After Vasquez's capture, she was deported to Guatemala, and currently faces possible extradition to the US.  

InSight Crime Analysis

Vasquez's alleged links to multiple Central American crime groups is partly indicative of how flexible criminal operatives need to be in this region, especially when it comes to drug trafficking. By and large, Central America's drug transport networks move cocaine on an as-needed basis for Mexican cartels, rather than remaining loyal to any one particular group. 

SEE ALSO: Guatemala News and Profiles

These types of flexible relationships have also come to light during Repollo's ongoing trial -- according to testimony from one key member of his network, he partnered with 11 smaller drug trafficking cells in Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala. Meanwhile, the Valles, in addition to their alleged ties to Vasquez, are believed to have worked with Jairo Orellana Morales, a Guatemalan drug trafficker whose penchant for stealing drug shipments earned him the name "The King of Tumbes." 

share icon icon icon

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

What are your thoughts? Click here to send InSight Crime your comments.

We encourage readers to copy and distribute our work for non-commercial purposes, with attribution to InSight Crime in the byline and links to the original at both the top and bottom of the article. Check the Creative Commons website for more details of how to share our work, and please send us an email if you use an article.

Was this content helpful?

We want to sustain Latin America’s largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources.

DONATE

Related Content

CHAPITOS / 9 AUG 2022

Little clarity has followed the brazen assassination of a local police chief in northern Mexico.

ELITES AND CRIME / 3 AUG 2022

Cartels like the Chapitos have asked for forgiveness from the Mexican people. Will it ever be given?…

ELITES AND CRIME / 22 APR 2021

Former Guatemalan president Jimmy Morales' dismantling of an anti-corruption commission has come back to haunt him -- as prosecutors are…

About InSight Crime

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela Coverage Continues to be Highlighted

3 MAR 2023

This week, InSight Crime co-director Jeremy McDermott was the featured guest on the Americas Quarterly podcast, where he provided an expert overview of the changing dynamics…

THE ORGANIZATION

Venezuela's Organized Crime Top 10 Attracts Attention

24 FEB 2023

Last week, InSight Crime published its ranking of Venezuela’s ten organized crime groups to accompany the launch of the Venezuela Organized Crime Observatory. Read…

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime on El País Podcast

10 FEB 2023

This week, InSight Crime co-founder, Jeremy McDermott, was among experts featured in an El País podcast on the progress of Colombia’s nascent peace process.

THE ORGANIZATION

InSight Crime Interviewed by Associated Press

3 FEB 2023

This week, InSight Crime’s Co-director Jeremy McDermott was interviewed by the Associated Press on developments in Haiti as the country continues its prolonged collapse. McDermott’s words were republished around the world,…

THE ORGANIZATION

Escaping Barrio 18

27 JAN 2023

Last week, InSight Crime published an investigation charting the story of Desafío, a 28-year-old Barrio 18 gang member who is desperate to escape gang life. But there’s one problem: he’s…