Federal law enforcement agents on Tuesday conducted raids in several states, including New Mexico, and arrested seven people allegedly using the U.S. quarter horse racing industry to launder millions of dollars for one of Mexico\u2019s most powerful drug cartels.<\/p>\n
From the Albuquerque Journal<\/a>:<\/p>\n \u201cOne of those arrests occurred at Ruidoso Downs Race Track, and one of the horses the government says was purchased with Los Zetas drug money was Mr. Piloto, winner of the Downs\u2019 2010 All American Futurity.<\/p>\n \u201cFBI officials said the roundup \u2014 which netted Jose Trevino Morales, a brother of the cartel\u2019s No. 2 leader Miguel Angel Trevino Morales \u2014 included locations in Oklahoma, Texas and California.<\/p>\n \u201cSeven other suspects remained at large.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And from the El Paso Times<\/a>:<\/p>\n \u201cMillions of dollars were run through front companies to conduct transactions in Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma and California, the indictment says.<\/p>\n \u201cAmong the purchases made, according to the indictment, were 13 horses in September 2009 for $546,000; 23 horses in September 2010 in Ruidoso for $2.2 million; five horses in California for $442,000; and 12 horses in January 2011 for $546, 200.<\/p>\n \u201cThe indictment says that organization bought the horses from itself at inflated prices using shell companies.<\/p>\n \u201cAmong the sales the group is alleged to have made were the sale of a horse named Blues Girls Choice for $102,000; Devil Ridge for $100,000; Number One Cartel for $280,000; and Forty Force for $40,000.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n In a separate article<\/a>, the El Paso Times said the arrests had sent \u201cpowerful aftershocks\u201d through New Mexico\u2019s horseracing community:<\/p>\n The story was first reported by The New York Times, which had been investigating the situation for months. The news organization held its lengthy article<\/a> until the feds made their arrests. From that article:<\/p>\n \u201cThe Trevi\u00f1o brothers devised an elaborate scheme in which Mexican businessmen paid for the horses \u2014 some of them worth hundreds of thousands of dollars \u2014 from their own bank accounts so the purchases would appear legitimate, according to the affidavit. The Zetas would later reimburse the businessmen, and the horses\u2019 ownership would be transferred to Tremor. The brothers\u2019 activities on either side of the border made for a stark contrast. One week in May began with the authorities pointing fingers at Miguel \u00c1ngel Trevi\u00f1o for dumping the bodies of 49 people \u2014 without heads, hands or feet \u2014 in garbage bags along a busy highway in northern Mexico. The week concluded with Jos\u00e9 Trevi\u00f1o fielding four Tremor horses in a prestigious race at Los Alamitos Race Course, near Los Angeles.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n