Ramón Arellano Félix

Ramón Eduardo Arellano Félix (August 31, 1964 – February 10, 2002)[1] was a Mexican drug lord who alongside his brothers founded and led the Tijuana Cartel (a.k.a. the Arellano-Félix Organization). He was the leader of the enforcement wing of the organization until his assassination on February 10, 2002.[2]

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Arellano and the second or maternal family name is Félix.
Ramón Arellano Félix
FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitive
ChargesConspiracy to import cocaine and marijuana
AliasMón
Comandante Món
Colores
Description
BornRamón Eduardo Arellano Félix
(1964-08-31)August 31, 1964
Culiacán, Sinaloa, Mexico
DiedFebruary 10, 2002(2002-02-10) (aged 37)
Mazatlán, Sinaloa, Mexico
Cause of deathGunshot wound
Status
AddedSeptember 18, 1997
Number451
Deceased prior to capture

Biography

Standing 188 cm (6 ft 2 in) and 100 kg (220 lb), Ramon Arellano Félix was allegedly one of the most ruthless members of the cartel and was a suspect in various murders. Arellano Félix had been linked by Mexican police to the 1998 massacre of twelve members of a family outside of Ensenada, Baja California. The family was related to an alleged associate of the Arellano Félix Cartel.[3]

While in hiding in Los Angeles in 1995, Arellano Félix was unwittingly the subject of a televised prank when he was approached outside Mann's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood by Rupert Jee, who was filming a segment for the Late Show with David Letterman.[4][5]

On 18 September 1997, Ramon Arellano Félix became the 451st fugitive to be placed on the Ten Most Wanted list. Leading to his Most Wanted Fugitive listing in the United States, he had been charged in a sealed indictment in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, with Conspiracy to Import Cocaine and Marijuana in drug trafficking.

Kingpin Act sanction

On 1 June 2000, the United States Department of the Treasury sanctioned Ramón under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (sometimes referred to simply as the "Kingpin Act"), for his involvement in drug trafficking, along with eleven other international criminals.[6] The act prohibited U.S. citizens and companies from doing any kind of business activity with him, and virtually froze all his assets in the U.S.[7]

Death and aftermath

On 10 February 2002, Ramón Arellano Félix was killed in a gunfight in Bugambilia Street, Mazatlán, Sinaloa, where he was stopped due to a traffic infraction by Mexican police officer, Ángel Antonio Árias Torres. Arellano Félix drew his gun and mortally wounded Árias Torres twice in the chest, who fired back and killed Arellano Félix with a single bullet in the head while falling to the ground and dying. According to Jesús Zambada García (alias "El Rey"), Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán ordered Árias Torres to enact the traffic stop and Arellano Félix' execution.[8]

Arellano's older brother, Benjamín Arellano Félix, the cartel's mastermind, was arrested weeks later on 9 March. On 14 August 2006, the youngest of the Arellano brothers, Francisco Javier Arellano Félix, was arrested with some associates at sea, by the United States Coast Guard. They were in international waters 25 km (16 mi) off the coast of Cabo San Lucas, Baja California Sur. Francisco Javier was extradited to the U.S. on September 16, 2006.

The only brother of the Arellano Félix cartel then at large, Eduardo Arellano Félix, was captured by the Mexican Army on 26 October 2008. At the time, the US State Department had been offering a reward of up to US$5 million for information leading to his arrest. According to a Mexican official, at the time of Eduardo Arellano Félix's capture, control of the cartel passed to Luis Fernando Sánchez Arellano, a son of Eduardo Arellano Félix's sister Alicia.

At around 16:00 local time on 23 June 2014,[9] Sánchez Arellano was arrested by soldiers of the Mexican Army and federal agents of the Procuraduría General de la República (PGR)[10][11] at a Carl's Jr. fast food restaurant in the Mesa de Otay borough in Tijuana, Baja California,[12] while watching the FIFA World Cup game between Mexico and Croatia. Sánchez Arellano was wearing the Mexico national team jersey and had the team's colors painted on his face.[13] The arrest was made without a single shot fired.[14] The security forces also confiscated US$100,000 he had with him at the moment of his arrest.[15]

In the 2017 Netflix and Univision series, El Chapo, Rolf Petersen plays Ramón Avendaño (a fictionalized portrayal of Ramón Arellano Félix).

Arellano Félix is portrayed by Manuel Masalva in the 2018 crime drama, Narcos: Mexico.

A 2003 Mexican film, "El fin de los Arellano" ("The End of the Arellanos"), featured characters supposedly based on the Arellano brothers; however, its plot bore practically no resemblance to the actual events.

The Arellano brothers were allegedly an inspiration for the two secondary characters of "the Obregón brothers", featured in the 2000 US film Traffic.

  • Ramón
    Ramón
  • Fake ID retrieved from Ramón's body
    Fake ID retrieved from Ramón's body
  • Picture of the Arellano-Felix Family (Ramon not present)
    Picture of the Arellano-Felix Family (Ramon not present)

See also

References
  1. "¿Who was Ramon Arellano Felix? February 2021". thedruglords. Retrieved 2021-02-05.
  2. Steller, Tim (15 April 1998). "Mexican drug runners may have used C-130 from Arizona". The Arizona Daily Star. Archived at California State University Northridge. Archived from the original on 2008-01-03. Retrieved 2007-09-26.
  3. "18 Slain Execution-Style at Farm Near Ensenada". Los Angeles Times. 1998-09-18. Retrieved 2021-02-09.
  4. How DEA Agents Took Dowmn Mexico's Most Vicious Drug Cartel David Epstein, The Atlantic (January/February 2016)
  5. El Chapo: The Untold Story of the World's Most Infamous Drug Lord Noah Hurowitz (2021)
  6. "DESIGNATIONS PURSUANT TO THE FOREIGN NARCOTICS KINGPIN DESIGNATION ACT" (PDF). United States Department of the Treasury. 15 May 2014. p. 1. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
  7. "An overview of the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act" (PDF). United States Department of the Treasury. 2009. p. 1. Archived from the original (PDF) on 28 May 2014. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
  8. Alvarado, Isaias (9 February 2019). "Asesino, torturador y depredador de niñas: el perfil criminal de 'El Chapo' revelado en su juicio". Univision (in Spanish).
  9. "Fernando Sánchez Arellano: 12 años operando en Tijuana antes de su captura" (in Spanish). CNNMéxico. Turner Broadcasting System. 24 June 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  10. "Suponen detención de Fernando Sánchez Arellano 'El Ingeniero'" (in Spanish). Zeta. 23 June 2014. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  11. Mosso, Rubén (24 June 2014). "Ejército detiene a uno de los Arellano Félix" (in Spanish). Milenio. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  12. Otero, Silvia (25 June 2014). ""El Ingeniero" disfrutaba goles del Tri cuando fue detenido" (in Spanish). El Universal (Mexico City). Retrieved 27 June 2014.
  13. Dibble, Sandra (23 June 2014). "Arellano drug gang leader captured in TJ". U-T San Diego. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  14. Quiroz, Carlos (24 June 2014). "Sin un solo disparo fue detenido 'El Ingeniero', confirma Rubido" (in Spanish). Excélsior. Retrieved 24 June 2014.
  15. Muedano, Marcos (24 June 2014). "Confirma gobierno federal detención de El Ingeniero" (in Spanish). El Universal (Mexico City). Retrieved 24 June 2014.
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