Property and luxuries have also been a key part of the fight against drug lords in Mexico. They share an unusual taste for luxury, opulence and extravagance that is reflected in their “narco-mansions”. In recent years, the Mexican government has managed to seize several of these houses.
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Over the years, the authorities have managed to seize large mansions from leaders of organized crime such as the late head of the Juárez Cartel, Amado Carrillo Fuentes, El Señor de los Cielos; Édgar Valdez Villarreal, alias La Barbie, a member of the Beltrán Leyva Cartel; and José Antonio Yépez Ortiz El Marro, leader of the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel, just to mention a few.
The newspaper El Universal (Mexico) recently made a recount of some of the most ostentatious properties in the drug world. Some of them have been raffled in raffles of the National Lottery, through the Institute to Return the Stolen to the People (Indep), an organization created by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (Amlo), in 2020.
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It is worth mentioning that the opulence of drug traffickers is not limited to residences with gold-plated finishes and laminates, but they have also seized high-end vehicles and even exotic animals.
The ranches of the Michoacán family
The most recent example was documented just last weekend, as members of the Armed Forces and the State of Mexico Prosecutor’s Office registered and secured two ranches and two mansions with artificial lakes, luxury cars and exotic animals in Tlatlaya and Amatepec. owned by La Familia Michoacana in Edomex.
That Mexican media reported that the properties allegedly used as a refuge and places for recreation by crime leaders, allegedly from La Familia Michoacana. One of the properties, located in the Puerto del Pollo community in the municipality of Amatepec, has two artificial lakes; a house with 14 rooms and a collection of exotic animals.
In addition, another 3.5-hectare ranch located in the community of Palmar Chico, also in Amatepec, has facilities for raising cattle and an arena for jaripeos (bull rodeo).
One of the two houses seized in the community of San Pedro Limón, in Tlatlaya, has an extension of two hectares, where there are swimming pools and gardens; the other insured residence is on a three-hectare site with sports fields, swimming pools and a stable.
Also seized were 70 heads of cattle, 30 heads of goats, 40 farm birds, three horses and two peacocks; as well as six vehicles, including two high-end vehicles, such as a Yukon-type pickup and a Dodge Ram Laramie pickup; two Polaris RZRs; four ATVs and a scooter, indicated authorities of the Edomex Prosecutor’s Office.
The house of ‘El Marro’
In March 2019, the luxurious residence of the huachicolero leader (so those who traffic in adulterated beverages and also contraband fuel) José Antonio Yépez Ortiz, El Marro, in Santa Rosa de Lima, was seized. The mansion features a pool, cabanas, beach palm trees, and two lion and tiger statues. In addition, security elements found two tigers in the building, one of them a cub, and evidence that El Marro used tunnels.
The luxurious house is located on a plot of 85 by 87 meters and perimeter fences three meters high, with barbed wire that protect it from onlookers. The building has three doors: the main entrance, the garage and an emergency access camouflaged as a brick wall, which leads to farmland.
In the central part there is a two-level house, with orange fences, a glassed-in terrace and a separate door that is accessed through the garden.
El Marro was captured in August 2020 by the Mexican authorities, he was accused of leading one of the main cartels dedicated to huachicol (an adulterated drink and also contraband fuel) and for the crimes of extortion and kidnapping.
The ranch of the ‘Barbie’
More than a decade ago, the El Paraíso ranch served as the headquarters of the Beltrán Leyva Cartel in Morelos and was one of the favorite sites of Édgar Valdez Villarreal, alias La Barbie.
Its luxurious facilities served for parties of the Beltrán Leyva Cartel. With an artificial lake, a bar in a Greek Parthenon, a bullring and a zoo, stables and 2.5 hectares of privacy, the place was quite a feat in the eyes of those attending the ranch located in the town of Atlacholoaya, in Morelos.
Last year, the property was selected by the INDEP to be raffled by the National Lottery, although prior to the decision to raffle the ranch, the residents of Atlacholoaya sought to convert it into a school but the federal government rejected it. It should be noted that Paradise can be traveled on foot in more than two hours.
After the arrest of La Barbie, the ranch was looted on three occasions: the first, by relatives of the Beltrán Leyva family, who, the neighbors say, took the most valuable objects; the second, by the same authorities, who are presumed to be the ones who took the animals out of the zoo; and the third by the residents, who took even the wiring to obtain copper.
The mansion of ‘The Lord of the Skies’
Located in Hermosillo, in the state of Sonora, the Arab-style mansion belonged to capo Amado Carrillo Fuentes. It was seized in 1993 by the Attorney General’s Office of the Republic of Mexico and demolished in 2020.
The palace of the narco was an unfinished property of 2,500 meters of land with 1,700 of construction. It featured huge rooms with cedar-based walk-in closets, as well as Jacuzzis surrounded by silver-finished mirrors. In addition, it had a basement where there were deposits and an underground passageway.
For many years, despite its enormous fences, it was a den of vicious people. The construction began to show deterioration and paint. And although in 2018 it had a for sale sign by a realtor, the property ended up being torn down. So far it is only known that the land has several owners.
The Lord of the Skies was the head of the Juarez Cartel. He died in 1997 during plastic surgery to modify his face. His nickname was due to the fact that he used his fleet of planes for cocaine trafficking.
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