Houston Texas Is Considered a Home to Drug Cartels

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- Violence is a big part of the Mexican drug trade. All too often its impact can be felt here in Houston, hundreds of miles from the border.

Violent turf battles between the cartels are being waged on our streets. Some say what's happening is a threat to national security.

While the streets of our city are a long way from the bloodshed and violence associated with the drug cartels along the U.S.-Mexico border, Houston has become home to some of these ultra-dangerous, highly-sophisticated criminal gangs.

"They are a major supplier of drugs that go through Houston," said Chief Harold Hurtt of the Houston Police Department.


The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) estimates that 92% of the illegal drugs that come into the U.S. cross the southwestern border. Almost everything from Mexico comes through Houston, in part because of our geography. We have the dubious distinction of being one of the major drug distribution points for the Gulf Cartel and it's become a multi-billion dollar a year business.

"We see marijuana coming into Houston, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine," said Associate SPC Agent Thomas Hinojosa of the DEA.

The majority of which is then sold and dispersed to dealers in other parts of the country. Who's selling the drugs? Try hundreds, if not thousands, of local cartel operatives who are greedy and hungry for money.

"Once you enter that underworld, then you see everybody that's doing it. You'd be surprised," said Jose who used to import and sell marijuana and cocaine for the Gulf Cartel until he was arrested in a sting operation.

Jose asked us to keep his identity a secret. He said doing the cartel's dirty work is a cutthroat business.

"You always know that at some point either you are going to be arrested or you may wind up dead," said Jose.

As an elite member of the cartel, Jose said his greatest fear wasn't the authorities, but the threat of violence from his rivals, many of whom are dealers working for same cartel. He said, in a business based on gluttony and power, there's no such thing as loyalty.

"It could be anybody, another cartel, it could be your best friend," said Jose. "If somebody finds out that you have a large quantity that's accessible to you, then they'll try to kidnap you or kill you. Maybe even kidnap one of your family members."

While there's no hard statistics to back those claims, law enforcement, whether it's local, state or federal, are able to make that connection between the violence on our streets and the cartels as they dig deeper in a criminal investigation.

"As a whole, we are doing a good job of indentifying cells in this region and attacking them from within and taking them out," said Hinojosa.

In the last 13 months, federal, state, and local authorities have seized more than 14,000 pounds of illegal drugs in the Houston area. That's nearly a thousand pounds a month with a street value of nearly $22 million.

The bus lines that bring people in from Mexico to Houston are being used by these criminal gangs to smuggle drugs into the country. The DEA seized hundreds of kilos of cocaine during a bust three years ago. All but one of people involved in the operation have been convicted.

"There is such a market that you can't stop it from coming in because there's so much money involved at the same time," said Jose.

It's a war being fought on both sides of the border that's far from being won.

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[Cajetoso23]

As long as your white shity ass keep doing drugs, there is going to be someone willing to produce them. plain simply. white consumes and mexicans produces.

[CannabisEducation420]

@Cajetoso23 Your a ignorant moron... every single race on planet earch consumes drugs. Mexico is one of the highest drug consuming nations next to the United States. Drug abuse clinics in Mexico have been shut down due to fears that the cartels will raid them & kill everyone inside. It has happened before... in 2009 cartels raided a clinic & killed 72 people. I hate it when dumb ignorant people like you make uneducated comments like that. Open a book, read something.

[KSdrifter]

Why not make addict centers where the addicts can check in and do menial labor for their fix. Make it to where they have to check in for a month at a time and if the get caught messing with drugs on the outside off to a forced labor camp they go. The current situation is getting nothing but worse. Mexico is ruined, druggies are still getting meth, crack, whatever, and something must be done. THINK OUTSIDE THE BOX!!!!

[CannabisEducation420]

@KSdrifter What do you think prison is? It is a forced labor camp. I use to live in Huntsville Texas, which is a well known prison town with more than a dozen prisons in the area. I witnessed prison guards on horseback with shotguns watching over a bunch of men with pick axes plowing the ground for crops. Locking up people for petty drug possession is the issue. Legalize all drugs, regulate them so that drug cartels no longer receive business & use earnings from drugs sales for drug rehab.

[KSdrifter]

This keeps the cops employed and the prisons full. It is really great, especially for Mexico and its citizens. The main culprit is the drug addict. Let them overdose on drugs quickly and legally and eventually this problem will become less of one.

[CannabisEducation420]

@KSdrifter The addict is the culprit, I do agree, but expecting someone to do away with a drug that gives them pleasure is like asking a sex addict to commit to not having sex. The only people that can think with a clear & uninfluenced mind is lawmakers & enforcers.

I personally only think marijuana is the only substance that has truely been done wrong by the criminal justice system. Meth, heroine & cocaine are poisons & I have no interest in advocating their efficacy. Legalize cannabis!

[CannabisEducation420]

@hispanic88 Cannabis is estimated to generate at least 60% - 70% of the income for these drug cartels. If cannabis was made legal it would assist in lessening the impact of these ruthless cartels. I personally don't have an answer for all other substances aside from weed because I believe anything other than weed is trash. If all drugs were made legal I would have no interest in anything but cannabis.

[makemoneysellingweed]

damn

[VVhiteWidoVV420]

Sadly, Marijuana vvill NEVER be compleley legal... so easy to grovv, the governement vvould never be able to keep tabs on vvho is buying / selling this product. This means NO TAX revenue coming in, the government benefits more vvith Marijuana remaining iLLEGAL..

And as the LEGAL drug dealers make BILLION$, they also contribute to..

100,000+ deaths / year (ALCOHOL)

400,000+ deaths / year (TOBACCO)

100,000+ deaths / year (Prescription Drugs)

[kingkyzr]

yea, rick perry 2012....gimme a break

[neodeville]

This is why Houston is a shithole. We will soon be fighting a war on our own streets just as Mexico is.

[thds699]

They should  legalize the drugs, Tax the hell out of it and pay off our national debt

[5rdx5rd]

what kind of monster would sell this stuff to a addict

[AliMexikano]

@Chapulinazuladomx miami is gay! those crack heads are homos queers and fags