TEXAS TAKES A STEP BACK
WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 4, 2015
FREE
LONGHORNS REFLECT ON SHUTOUT LOSS TO IOWA STATE, 7A
DELIVERED EVERY SATURDAY
TO 4,000 HOMES
A HEARST PUBLICATION
ON THE WEB: THEZAPATATIMES.COM
TEXAS
ZAPATA COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE
Immigration issues
Man arrested for stealing from CVS
Activists want Gov. Abbott to take action By JAY ROOT AND JULIÁN AGUILAR TEXAS TRIBUNE
Photo by Eva Hershaw | Texas Tribune
Gov. Greg Abbott speaks to reporters at the Security Operations Center at the Department of Public Safety on May 12.
While pro-immigrant activists pressure law enforcement authorities to take a gentler approach toward undocumented offenders in county jails, some conservatives are taking aim at Republican Gov. Greg Abbott over his decision not to act immediately to stop
them. Abbott warned last week that the more lenient approach adopted recently in Dallas could put Texans’ lives at risk, and he promised to crack down on jails that free undocumented immigrants rather than hand them over to the federal government. But in-
See IMMIGRATION PAGE 10A
MATAMOROS, TAMAULIPAS
CARTEL VIOLENCE
By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
A man was arrested for stealing razors from CVS Pharmacy on 1205 U.S. 83, according to authorities. Zapata County Sheriff ’s Office deputies responded to the theft call Oct. 27. Pharmacy representatives reported to authorities that a man identified as Juan Jose Guadalupe Herrera had taken five Gillette Mach 3 razors valued at $183.92. Surveillance video allegedly showed Herrera taking and concealing some razors in his pockets. Reports alleged he took the razors off the display rack as he looked at his surroundings for any
employees. “Herrera then grabbed the razors and began to place the razors into his pants and pockets,” sheriff ’s officials said. Herrera allegedly returned a HERRERA second time to grab more razors and placed them in his pockets and pants. On Thursday, authorities served him with a theft warrant. Herrera posted bond Monday. (César G. Rodriguez may be reached at 7282568 or cesar@lmtonline.com)
ZAPATA SOUTH ELEMENTARY SCHOOL
Courtesy photo
The Zapata County Sheriff’s Office and the Texas Department of Public Safety taught students the importance of staying drug free.
Courtesy photo
This house in Matamoros, Mexico is riddled with bullet holes after a gun fight. A recent burst of cartel violence still threatens to interrupt life here at any moment.
Criminals have a grip on corner of Mexico By AARON NELSEN SAN ANTONIO EXPRESS-NEWS
MATAMOROS, Mexico — With yellow street lights shining down on them, a group of civic-minded professionals contemplated bicycle groups and blighted city parks as an army convoy rumbled past. But underlying the benign conversation emerged a bold plan: to wrest control of this border city of around a half-million people across the Rio Grande from Brownsville from the Gulf Cartel. “These other people, these violent people, made
us believe with their guns that the city is theirs, and it’s not true,” said one group member, who, fearing for his safety, agreed to speak only on condition of anonymity. “This city is ours.” A recent burst of cartel violence still threatens to interrupt life at any moment. The latest episode spilled into the streets in October when federal authorities arrested the reigning drug lord in town, Angel Eduardo Prado Rodriguez, alias “Ciclon 7.” Gunbattles erupted soon after as a faction of the Gulf Cartel clashed with sol-
diers. “(The fighting) was behind my house,” an elementary school teacher said, asking to remain anonymous for professional and safety reasons. “It sounded horrible.” In the face of powerful drug gangs, it would seem this small group of architects, businessmen and artists is a modest response to the deep-rooted problem of organized crime. And yet, empowering residents by any means is a dangerous proposition in a city and region that have witnessed a plague of kidnappings and disappearances over
the past several years. Unlike other Mexican cities where rampant drug violence has given rise to uprisings by residents, in this isolated corner of the Texas-Mexico border, the silence is pervasive. “We’re like another Mexico,” said Mario Rodriguez, a researcher at the Colegio de la Frontera Norte, a think tank in Matamoros. “We haven’t had a local police force for years, and we’ve grown accustomed to seeing military on our streets.” One night in late Octo-
See CARTEL PAGE 10A
Drug awareness campaign By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
County and state authorities recently visited Zapata South Elementary School during a drug awareness campaign. The Zapata County Sheriff ’s Office and the Texas Department of Public Safety joined efforts to teach the students the importance of staying drug free, sheriff ’s official said. Trooper Conrad J. Hein, Texas Department
of Public Safety spokesman, said authorities led the children on a pledge to stay drug free. Hein also shared the history of Red Ribbon and the life of slain DEA Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena, who remained on the trail of the country’s biggest marijuana and cocaine traffickers until his kidnapping Feb. 7, 1985. He was found dead
See CAMPAIGN PAGE 10A