Reuters AlertNet Lite - Accused Mexican drug lord may face US death penalty

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Accused Mexican drug lord may face US death penalty

20 Dec 2006 23:32:02 GMT
Source: Reuters

LOS ANGELES, Dec 20 (Reuters) - The alleged leader of Mexico's most infamous drug cartel pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to U.S. federal charges of murder, racketeering, drug trafficking and money laundering across the U.S.-Mexican border.

Javier Arellano-Felix, 37, arrested by the U.S. Coast Guard in international waters in August, could face the death penalty if convicted, prosecutors said after a court hearing in San Diego. U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez will decide at a later date whether to seek the death penalty.

The indictment unsealed on Wednesday accuses Arellano-Felix of being the principal organizer and top leader of the Tijuana-based Arellano-Felix Organization (AFO) since March 2002 and of using murder and bribes to import cocaine and marijuana into the United States.

He is also charged with ordering the January 2005 murder of a Tijuana deputy police chief and the beheading of three Rosarito Beach police officers in June 2006.

Another accused AFO member, Manuel Arturo Villareal-Heredia, faces almost identical charges. The two men are accused of importing more than 4,000 kg of cocaine and more than 900 kg of marijuana into the United States an intending to distribute it there.

Trial is expected next spring in San Diego.

Javier Arellano-Felix is the youngest of the Arellano-Felix brothers, who prosecutors say have controlled the drug cartel since the late 1980s. Brother Ramon was killed in a shoot-out with police in Mexico in 2002, Benjamin was arrested in Mexico in 2002 and Eduardo is at large.

Older brother Francisco Rafael was extradited to the United States from Mexico in September in a crackdown by then President Vicente Fox on cross-broder trafficking.

Villareal-Heredia's lawyer told reporters that 90 percent of the crimes attributed to his client took place in Mexico and that the trial should also take place there.

"Almost all (the) witnesses are in Mexico," lawyer Kerry Steigerwalt said. "It's just horribly unfair. Absolutely, horribly unfair. You can't subpoena them. You can't compel them to testify."

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Last updated:Wed Dec 20 23:32:18 2006