He still faces separate charges in another killing in Laredo that was allegedly carried out on the orders of the. Considered one of the bloodiest hitmen in the state of Chihuahua, the Mexican army called Escajeda "a lieutenant and one of the main operators" of the Juarez cartel. Reta's first kill was at 13 years old. Some like it, NOT! But investigators started suspecting something more sinister. It was the ease with which the boys could cross back and forth across the border that made them valuable to the Mexican Zetas drug cartel. Click through the slideshow to view infamous Mexican hitmen. They brought him to a ranch where, according to Reta, 'They were torturing people and getting information from them. Both Reta and Cardona were born to a families with relatives on both sides of the U.S.-Texas border. Gabriel Cardona, who shows his tattooed eyelids, worked as a hit man for a Mexican cartel. 1 of 3 Authorities say Rosalio Reta Jr., 17, is a member of the ``Zetillas,'' young enforcers for the Gulf Cartel. I left school. Im really a good person, he said. Investigators say Reta and another American recruit were paid $500 a week on retainer to sit and wait for a call to kill. Rosalio Retas career as a teen drug cartel assassin had begun. If he refused to murder the stranger, Reta recalls, the drug lord would have killed him. Reta grew up in Laredo, Texas, on the U.S.-Mexico border, and joined the Zetas at just 13 years old, after meeting its second-in-command, Miguel Trevio. The job of a cartel assassin isnt one most people grow old and retire from. While in prison, Zavala spoke to middle and high school students as the principal speaker in the Libre de Prisiones program, according to Proceso. 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That same night, Trevino had Reta execute his first victim, and he became part of a team of highly-skilled assassins chosen from Mexican-American youths after training in handguns, assault rifles, and rocket launchers. Hari can only imagine how Rubi Fraire, Juan Manuel Olgun, and, Would not have made it through AP Literature without the printable PDFs. Since age 14 I was in court. Instant downloads of all 1699 LitChart PDFs Your effort and contribution in providing this feedback is much 'I've come to regret everything I've done. Cardona had eyeballs tattooed on his eyelids. "We have to remember that the United States is the market they are trying to get to. Reta and Cardona were paid a $500 retainer each week. They were raised in poverty and with the many problems inherent to poverty. He graduated to smuggling drugs and weapons across the Rio Grande. Convicted of two murders (he says he killed. But this was a put-on, Slater writes. Now you can hear that account for yourself. Featuring his first-ever on-camera interview, this is the extraordinary story of Rosalio 'Bart' Reta. This is a carousel. Healthy mother-of-two, 32, collapsed and died from brain bleed while she led fitness bounce class, Taking Vitamin D each day could cut your chances of getting dementia, study claims. Cardona was also making a name for himself at that time, and impressing the same narco leaders. SHARN STEINMANN/Houston Chronicle Show More Show Less 2 of 3 Lori Garcia . Reta dropped out sixth grade; Cardona left school in ninth grade. He was eighty when I met him, and about to be elected to his sixth consecutive term. "Under the circumstances, it was the best we could do," Pena said of the plea. Kids in England had to wear masks at school because No10 'didn't want an argument' with Nicola Sturgeon - Health ministers knew there was no evidence to justify making kids abide by rule of 6 - but No10 'didn't Charles evicting Harry and Meghan is the act of a King putting his country first: REBECCA ENGLISH reveals A royal princess at Eton? They wave that power, that cash, the cars, the easy money. I stopped studying.. The following record for Rosalio Reta was recently collected from the state department of corrections website of Texas, of those serving a term of correctional supervision. Once he bragged to police, 'If I cannot hit you in the forehead from a distance, I will kneel down in front of you and put my forehead against the muzzle of your gun. He was allegedly part of a "cell" of young enforcers that followed rivals and tracked members of the cartel's own ranks. "There are sleeper cells in the U.S.," said Detective Garcia. His mind isnt haunted by violent images from his former life. It was real hard for me. Did you encounter any technical issues? Rebecca Salinas is a digital producer at the San Antonio Express-News. 2023 Cable News Network. Some are teenagers, some are from Texas, and some are still on the run. Rosalio Reta is a former Zeta Cartel hitman whom Hari visits at the Texas prison where he is currently serving a 70-year sentence for several murders. A close friend, Gabriel Cardona, now 26, lived nearby. "There's no doubt about it.". He and Reta became Zetas hitmen, training in various types of weapons before being unleashed on the streets of Laredo. Assistant District Attorney Jesse Guillen said the trial in the second case against Reta would likely start soon and would give authorities another chance to add time to the teen's prison sentence. In an interview with CNN, Reta describes a night when friends took him across the river to Nuevo Laredo. Remorseless: Cardona appears unrepentant for his nightmarish crimes. For his part, Cardona is not as remorseful. 'Cell' of young enforcersThe accused ring leader in the Flores killing, Jesus "Jesse" Gonzales, fled to Mexico after making bail. Rosalio "Bart" Reta, 17, was immediately sentenced to 40 years in prison. The original text plus a side-by-side modern translation of. They each say they lived the life for about three years, Cardona from age 16 to 19; Reta, from age 13 to 16. Cardona claims he was spending more than $10,000 a week. An argument broke out: A man wanted to know what Reta, a stranger, was doing there. I loved doing it, killing that first person," Reta says on the videotape obtained by CNN. Denounced by Mexicos Catholic Church, Santa Muerte is a popular symbol among drug traffickers. He's the author of two odd books of fiction, 'Ivyland' and 'True False. When Reta arrived at the ranch, it was a crash course in drug cartel culture. Rosalio Reta and his friend, Gabriel Cardona, were members of a three-person cell of American teenagers working as cartel hit men in the United States, according to prosecutors. The cartel leader looked at Reta and ordered him to shoot and kill a man tied up on the ground. Facebook gives people the power to share and makes the. CNNs Ismael Estrada contributed to this report. Menu. I couldnt believe what I was seeing. TRAGEDY: Mexico's drug war claims thousands of lives every single year (Image: GETTY) The I Files, a YouTube channel devoted to investigative journalism that uploaded the Reta interview, has promised a full documentary about him and the Zetas in the coming months. But what we fail to see is that we do it to ourselves.. After he botched a job in Mexico, he knew that he would face Trevino's death, so he surrendered to the law and agreed to testify against the Zetas. US-born Jimenez Lugo was convicted at age 14 for working as a hitman for a Mexican drug gang, the South Pacific drug cartel. Three people exemplify its story: an angel [Juan Manuel Olgun], a killer [, dangerous. Ive come to regret everything Ive done, Reta said. . Be the first to contribute! The men say cartel leaders provided them with a house and extravagant cars. Gabriel Cardona and Rosalio 'Bart' (as in Bart Simpson) Reta are American citizens of the border town of Laredo, Texas. Reta, 24, and Cardona, 26, still bear signs of their years as feared assassins. Rosalio Reta was just 13 years old when Miguel Trevio, leader of the ruthless Zetas, the paramilitary wing of Mexico's Gulf Cartel, recruited him as a killer. She was gunned down in front of the state capitol in Chihuahua City during a protest against the drug cartels influence in the Mexican government. They offered a first-hand glimpse inside the sinister world of drug cartels, a world that plagues innocent people on both sides of the border. My students love how organized the handouts are and enjoy tracking the themes as a class., Requesting a new guide requires a free LitCharts account. Report: Houston is the No. Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts. Alleged member of the gang Los Aztecas, Chavez Castillo has admitted to over 800 murders, sometimes beheading and dismembering them. Cardona says it wasnt long before he also became a drug cartel assassin. Reta said he began to fear that rival cartel members were getting close to killing him as retribution, so while working on an assignment in Monterrey, Mexico, he called a contact at the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency and surrendered. Since 1993, he has been the elected sheriff of Maricopa County, Arizona. He doesnt spend a lot of time thinking about the violence he wielded, he said. Watch: Astros SP Luis Garcia debuts new windup after rule changes, Oops! Reta pleaded guilty to two murders and was handed two prison sentences, of 30 and 40 years. Authorities say Reta worked on both sides of the border for Miguel Trevino Morales, the leader of the cartel's operation in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico. App. Creating notes and highlights requires a free LitCharts account. And like everything in the violent world of drug cartels, unraveling truth and myth seems fleeting. Jun. 12 pick, W&P Porter bowl review: A container that makes office lunch easy, A new musical spotlights a Texas bank-robbing legend. Teachers and parents! LAREDO, Texas (CNN) -- Rosalio Reta sits at a table inside a Laredo Police Department interrogation room. It was kind of hard to believe.'. The third member of the group, Gabriel Cardona, pleaded guilty and is serving an 80-year sentence. From the creators of SparkNotes, something better. Trevino, 40, faces charges of organized crime, homicide, torture and money laundering, a Mexican government security spokesman told reporters in July. Teenagers go there to drink and dance, but cartel members lurk there, keeping an eye out for possible recruits. People getting tortured, killed, decapitated. H/T Gawker | Photo via The I Files/YouTube, Miles Klee is a novelist and web culture reporter. Regret: Reta expresses his anguish over his killing career that began at 13 years old, Baby-faced killers: Cardona was barely in his 20s and Reta was still a teenager when they were sent to jail for the rest of their lives, River to hell: The international bridge over the Rio Grande that links Laredo, Texas to Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, Crossing: The border post at Laredo, Texas is one of the most important drug routes in the U.S. for Mexican drug cartels. In January 2009, Lopez confessed to disposing more than 300 corpses. Release Calendar Top 250 Movies Most Popular Movies Browse Movies by Genre Top Box Office Showtimes & Tickets Movie News India Movie Spotlight. A Warner Bros. Although he initially commented I like what I do in regards to his career as a hitman, Reta in recent weeks has affected a more remorseful tone: It gets to a point where I cant even stand myself, he says. Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday & Metro Media Group, King Charles hosts von der Leyen at Windsor Castle, Woman appears to fake injury while arguing with tradie next door, Putin spy plane before being 'destroyed by pro-Ukraine Belarus group', Amplified jet stream could lead to 'disruptive snow in places', Dashcam captures moment two cars collide on a roundabout, Putin orders intelligence service to find 'scum' who oppose him, Gabor Mat: No Jewish state without oppressing local population, Police search allotment sheds for Constance Marten's missing baby, Huge urgent police search for missing baby of Constance Marten, Biden claims ICU nurse would whisper in his ear and BREATH on him, Child reads from sexually explicit book at Maine school board meeting, Moment supermarket cashier is attacked at work in New York. The following correctional supervision record (the "Record") was collected from the official state department of corrections website (see below for source link). A teenage hit man who killed at the behest of leaders of the Gulf Cartel pleaded guilty on Tuesday to a December 2005. In interviews with CNN, Laredo police detectives and prosecutors . Their short but bloody careers came crashing down swiftly, one after the other. This Houston rodeo food vendor wants you to eat his rattlesnake. Teach your students to analyze literature like LitCharts does. I couldnt take it anymore. Given six months of military training in Mexico, he was sent across the border. Reta killed his first victim at 13 years old, when a drug lord handed him a gun and commanded him to shoot another man. Rosalio Reta, convicted drug cartel assassin Over the years the ramshackle neighborhood has developed into a discarded border region where homes sit on dilapidated foundations and families live. A large image of Santa Muerte or Saint of Death marks Cardonas back. At an age when most kids are starting high school, Texas teen Rosalio Reta, now 24, was carrying out bloody murders for one of Mexico's most sadistic and violent drug cartels. Although Z-40 virtually ruled northern Mexico without fear, as Reta came to know him he began to see Trevino as a regular guy. For four more years, he is known to have killed 30 people total, acting as a hitman for the Zeta cartel. Infamous cartel hit man 'El Wicked' strangled in prison: Mexican authorities. Use Next and Previous buttons to navigate. I will look you in the eyes while you kill me.'. appreciated. DeSantis looms large over Abbott in Texas, SAPD: Westside double shooting leaves 2 in critical condition. And both sported tattoos of "Santa Muerte," the Grim Reaper-like pseudo-saint worshipped by drug traffickers. Gonzalez Duran is allegedly one of the founding members of the Zetas, a group of army deserters who went to work as hitmen for the Gulf drug cartel. Harry Anslinger employed Joe Arpaio in 1957 to be an agent in the Federal Bureau of Narcotics, and he rose through the bureau over decades. Then Noe Flores was gunned down in a clear case of mistaken identity. He still faces separate charges in another killing in Laredo that was allegedly carried out on the orders of the Mexican Gulf Cartel. Prosecutors say they quickly discovered these two teenagers were homegrown assassins, hired to carry out the dirty work of the notorious Gulf Cartel. For him, there is no future. . Reta didnt know who the man was, but it was clear he instilled fear and commanded respect among everyone standing around watching the dramatic scene unfold. Trevino then released his team of assassins onto the streets of Laredo, Texas, engaging in a series of high-profile murders. CNN Sans & 2016 Cable News Network. ", In Cardona's interrogation tape, there are clues that "Los Zetas" are reaching deeper and deeper into the United States. 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