EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) – An escaped American drug smuggler and an alleged hitman for a Sinaloa cartel cell are among 15 individuals targeted in the latest iteration of the border’s Most Wanted international media campaign.
The program formally known as Se Busca Informacion (Information Wanted) started in Laredo in 2016 and has steadily expanded to El Paso, Tucson, and now Yuma, Ariz. It relies on anonymous tips from the public to locate criminals who victimize people on both sides of the border or cross international boundaries to escape prosecution.
“This program is a binational effort that engages the public in our fight against cross-border organized crime that threatens our entire (region),” said Justin De La Torre, chief agent for the Yuma Sector of the U.S. Border Patrol. “While these targets are local… their arrest has national impact for the United States and Mexico.”
The 15 individuals featured in posters to be placed at border crossings and disseminated through social media include Sinaloa cartel associates known to operate in the Mexican border states of Sonora and Baja California.
German Hiram Robles Matas is wanted for the killing of Mexican soldiers in Sonora. Last year, the Mexican government offered a 500,000-peso ($25,000) reward for his capture.
Known by the alias of “El Gallero” – someone who raises roosters for cockfighting – has been identified by Mexican authorities as a leader of the Los Salazar cell of the Sinaloa cartel in the San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, region, Milenio reported.
Mexican online publications report the group was behind the murder of two Guardia Nacional (National Guard) soldiers in retaliation for the 2023 killing of Robles’ brother.
Robles is No. 2 on the list. The No. 1 target is Ivan Duarte Piña.
Duarte is wanted for murder and criminal conspiracy.
“(Duarte) Piña has been linked to the Sinaloa cartel and the attempted killing of police officers in San Luis Rio Colorado” in Sonora, De La Torre said.
Mexican authorities have linked Duarte, a.k.a., La Piña (Pineapple), to the Los Rusos cell of the Sinaloa cartel operating in Sonora and Baja California. A federal judge last November unsealed an indictment against 48 alleged distributors of fentanyl, heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine in Imperial Valley, Calif.
Prosecutors associated the defendants to Los Rusos, which they described as “one of the most violent and significant” factions of the Sinaloa cartel. The nonprofit Armed Conflict Location and Event Data (ACLED) identifies Los Rusos as allies of the Ismael “Mayo” Zambada faction of the cartel, which is at war with Los Chapitos and Los Salazar factions.
At least one American is on the Se Busca Informacion list.
De La Torre described Ramiro Junior Hernandez as a narcotics trafficker who escaped from prison while serving his sentence. The U.S. Marshals Service is looking for him.
To share the whereabouts of any of the 15 individuals, authorities have set up a toll free number: (928) 699-5919. Se Busca program tips typically go to a U.S. call center or are received as texts by federal authorities who share relevant information with their Mexican counterparts.
The campaign yielded immediate results since its Friday launch. On Saturday, the Sinaloa Attorney General’s Office arrested Mariana Fernandez Lopez, the No. 11 target on Se Busca Informacion, El Universal reported.
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