Pubdate: Sun, 15 Mar 2009
Source: El Paso Times (TX)
Copyright: 2009 El Paso Times
Contact: http://www.elpasotimes.com/formnewsroom
Website: http://www.elpasotimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/829
Author: Daniel Borunda

MORE MEXICAN TROOPS ARRIVE IN JUAREZ

"Military Personnel Will Directly Attack Crimes"

Mexican army special forces paratroopers were among more than 4,000
soldiers who arrived in Juarez during the weekend as part of a surge
in the federal government's effort to battle a crime wave sparked by
warring drug cartels.

Lines of army transport trucks, pickups and Humvees rolled onto city
streets Sunday afternoon as the final convoy with nearly 1,500 troops
arrived, Enrique Torres, a spokesman for Joint Operation Chihuahua,
said.

There are now more than 7,000 soldiers and 2,300 federal police in
Juarez as part of Joint Operation Chihuahua, the federal crackdown on
crime.

"Military personnel will directly attack crimes such as kidnappings,
extortion and robberies that have increased recently as well as
inhibit the murders in the city," a news statement issued by Joint
Operation Chihuahua said.

The latest military deployments, all out of Mexico City, were the
Second Brigade of Military Police, the Sixth Brigade of Light Infantry
and the Special Group of Paratroopers.

The paratroopers will be commanded by Mexican army Brig. Gen. Pedro
Escalera Cobian, who arrived in Juarez during the weekend, Torres said.

Since late 2007, paratrooper units have improved the government's
capability to combat gangs of drug cartel enforcers formed by
ex-soldiers such as the infamous Zetas of the Gulf cartel, El
Universal newspaper reported last summer.

Night assaults, hostage liberation, urban raids and small unit combat
have been part of the intensified training.

The presence of soldiers and federal police has visibly increased in
Juarez in recent weeks following meetings between local leaders and
national security officials.

Numerous checkpoints dot city streets and Juarez television stations
are airing public service ads advising motorists on how to handle the
checkpoints.

When approaching a checkpoint, motorists should slow down, turn on the
vehicle's interior light, roll down windows, and the driver should
place both hands at the top of the steering wheel where they are
visible from the outside, the ads say. Residents are also advised to
carry identification.

Military officials are expected to take command of the city police on
Monday and later of transit police and the municipal Cereso prison,
officials said.

During the increase of federal forces, killings in Juarez have slowed
but continue.

The unidentified remains of seven men and two women were found
partially buried during the weekend in the desert south of the city.

There is speculation the grave is linked to the arrest last week of a
police captain and two officers accused of kidnapping victims for La
Linea, as the Juarez drug cartel is also known.

In other news, Juarez surgeon Manuel Antonio Sanchez Duarte was
arrested on weapons charges last week after federal police found an
arsenal in his medical office, federal officials said.

Sanchez refused to stop when federal police tried to pull his car over
on Wednesday night, officials said.

Police said they found a sawed-off shotgun and a .45-caliber handgun
in Sanchez's vehicle.

On Thursday, federal police used a search warrant to raid Sanchez's
office where they located several weapons, including a submachine gun,
a rifle, three .22-caliber handguns and an antique-style pistol.
Police also seized boxes of ammunition and items to make gun silencers.

Crime scene investigators also found various bullet holes on the doors
and windows of the three-story building.

It was not disclosed why Sanchez had the firearms.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin