Pubdate: Fri, 12 Jul 2013
Source: Record, The (Kitchener, CN ON)
Copyright: 2013 Metroland Media Group Ltd.
Contact:  http://www.therecord.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/225
Author: Jim Bronskill
Page: A3

CANADIAN CRIMINAL GANGS FORGING LINKS WITH MEXICAN OUTLAWS

OTTAWA - Canadian organized-crime groups have forged links with
Mexican outlaws in an attempt to secure a direct supply of cocaine and
increase their profits by eliminating the middleman, says the RCMP.

An internal analysis by the Mounties notes that since 2008 at least 10
Canadians have been shot or killed in Mexico under circumstances
suggesting involvement with local criminal elements.

Some were known to be active in drug trafficking in Canada and all had
extensive criminal backgrounds, says the RCMP analysis.

A copy of the May 2012 assessment, which takes a close look at the
influence of corruption, and a related review of the implications for
Canada - both heavily censored - were released to The Canadian Press
under the Access to Information Act.

The Mounties say global borders have become blurred with the
proliferation of transnational organized crime.

As a result, Canadian criminal networks have expanded, conducting
business on an international scale with illicit organizations in other
countries.

"Canadian criminal groups are now dealing directly with Mexican
criminals and crime groups in Mexico, a country struggling with
corruption and brutal violence," says the assessment by the RCMP's
criminal intelligence program.

In April last year, Thomas Gisby, a B.C. man with known gang ties, was
gunned down in a Nuevo Vallarta coffee shop. Three members of a group
known as the UN Gang and two people with purported links to Hells
Angels have also been killed in Mexico.

At the same time, interceptions of Canada-bound drug shipments "point
to possible connections between Mexican and Canadian-based crime
networks," the RCMP says.

A recently released Canada Border Services Agency report cites Mexico
as the largest transit point for South American cocaine destined for
North America. The RCMP assessment says competition among drug
trafficking organizations has made corruption endemic in Mexican
society, reflected in weakened governmental institutions, an
ineffective criminal justice system, and a deep-rooted fear and
distrust of authorities by the Mexican people.

"Mayors, city councillors, governors, police officers, customs
officials, and even Mexican anti-drug czars, have been corrupted by
wealthy drug traffickers who, in turn, operate with impunity and
increase their power throughout the country. Officials who cannot be
bribed or intimidated are often killed."

The RCMP notes Mexico ranked 100th of 182 countries on Transparency
International's 2011"corruption perceptions" index - falling to 105th
in 2012.

Efforts to make officials look the other way have spilled across the
Mexican border, with drug cartels paying bribes to U.S. officials for
help to smuggle drugs, guns and people.
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MAP posted-by: Matt