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FEDERAL COURT
VEHICLE IMPORTS
$1.7M in cocaine seized in county
Mexican vehicles
Weslaco man charged with intent to distribute
Mexico to trump Japan as No. 2 car exporter to US By ADRIANA GOMEZ LICON ASSOCIATED PRESS
CELAYA, Mexico — Sayonara, Japan. Mexico is on track to replace the Asian automotive giant as the second-largest exporter of cars to the United States by the end of the
year. An $800 million Honda plant opening Friday in the central state of Guanajuato will produce about 200,000 Fit hatchbacks a year, helping push total Mexican car exports to the U.S. to 1.7 million in 2014, roughly 200,000 more
than Japan, consulting firm IHS Automotive says. And, with another big plant starting next week, Mexico is expected to surpass Canada for the top spot by the end of 2015. “It’s a safe bet,” said Eduardo Solis, president of the Mexican Automotive Industry As-
sociation. “Mexico is now one of the major global players in car manufacturing.” Experts say Mexico’s relatively low wages, closeness to the U.S. and free-trade deals with more than three dozen
See CAR IMPORTS PAGE 11A
HOLOCAUST MEMORIES
By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
State and federal authorities seized cocaine worth $1.7 million and arrested a man in connection to the case Monday in southern Zapata County. A federal criminal complaint identified the suspect as Martin Gonzalez-Garces Jr., of Weslaco. He was charged with possess with intent to distribute a controlled substance, according to court documents filed Wednesday. On Monday afternoon, Homeland Security Investigations special agents were conducting surveillance in the Lopeño and Chihuahua area. Then, agents observed a red F-150 pickup operated by Gonzalez-Garces going into a ranch located on the north end of Lopeño, court records state. About 30 minutes later, the F-150 exited the ranch and headed south on U.S. 83 toward Roma. A few miles later, a Zapata County Sheriff ’s Office K-9 deputy pulled over the pickup for a traffic violation. Court records allege that GonzalezGarces was acting nervous. The narcotics detection dog alerted deputies to the possible presence of narcotics in the bed of the pickup. Asked if the vehicle could be taken to another area for better inspection, Gonzalez-Garces agreed, according to court documents. “Upon further inspection, (deputies) discovered tampering and missing screws in the bed liner of the vehicle,” the complaint states. Deputies discovered an aftermarket compartment when they removed the bed liner and found 117.61 pounds of cocaine
See COCAINE
PAGE 11A
MEMORIES GO MISSING Car thief claims Holocaust survivor’s treasures By MARC RAMIREZ THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS
D
ALLAS — What Max Glauben waited decades to obtain, thieves took in a matter of minutes. The 86-year-old retired garment-supply store owner survived five German concentration camps and often shares his story with school groups and conference attendees. As part of his talks, he shows a video that German officials recorded of him offering his testimony, or the photos he’s taken with luminaries such as Nobel Peace Prize-winning writer Elie Wiesel and President George W. Bush. But sometime Tuesday evening or early Wednesday morning, those items were among other treasures stolen from his car as it sat outside his North Dallas home. He doesn’t care to prosecute. He just wants his prized
Photo by David Woo/The Dallas Morning News | AP
Max Glauben, 86, stands in front of photographs taken of him, his mother and brother in Poland at the Dallas Holocaust Museum/Center for Education. Max is in the photograph to his left, standing next to his mother, to her right. collection back. Most of the materials were papers, photos, documents and personal things, some irreplaceable, like the photos
and medals and other crafted items given to him as gifts. “You know, they’re not valuable to them,” Glauben told The Dallas Morning News,
“but to me, they mean an awful lot.” He’d grown up in Warsaw,
See HOLOCAUST
PAGE 11A
SHERIFF’S OFFICE
SHERIFF’S OFFICE
Playing with a child allegedly turns violent
Police: Relief takes threatening turn
By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
Child play went too far when a man allegedly assaulted a child, authorities said this week. Luis Antonio AriasAleman, 31, was arrested and charged with injury to a child, a state jail felony punishable with up to two years in jail, Feb. 12 in the 400 block of Ann Drive. Arias-Aleman and a
child were hitting each other back and forth with a roll of ARIAS-ALEMAN wrapping paper, according to a Zapata County Sheriff ’s Office incident report. It wasn’t until later when the child hit Arias-
Aleman in the back, causing him to get “enraged,” sheriff ’s officials said. Deputies say Arias-Aleman then hit the child hard enough on the side of the stomach to knock him to the ground. This prompted his arrest. Arias-Aleman was released on a $10,000 bond Feb. 14. (César G. Rodriguez may be reached at 7282568 or cesar@lmtonline.com)
By CÉSAR G. RODRIGUEZ THE ZAPATA TIMES
A man allegedly caught urinating outside a business pulled a handgun and threatened to shoot people, according to the Zapata County Sheriff ’s Office. On Feb. 14, witnesses told deputies that Arnoldo Gonzalez, 38, who was believed to be drunk, was urinating in the parking lot of Lucky Spins in Fal-
con. Gonzalez was told not to do so but he pulled a knife. Gonzalez GONZALEZ then left but he returned armed with a handgun. He began threatening to shoot people until deputies arrived to take him
into custody. Gonzalez was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, a second-degree felony, which could carry a punishment of up to 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine. He was released from the Zapata Regional Jail on Feb. 15 on a $60,000 bond. (César G. Rodriguez may be reached at 7282568 or cesar@lmtonline.com)