Notorious Beltran Leyva Cartel Leader's Whereabouts No Longer a Mystery: 'La Barbie' Is Found

The current whereabouts of "missing" notorious Beltran Leyva Cartel leader Edgar Valdez Villareal, alias "La Barbie," is now known.

La Barbie's location has been unknown since late November as his name seemed to disappear in the database records of all inmates under the custody of the U.S. Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP). CNN previously reported that the agency's website showed that La Barbie was "not in BOP custody."

A BOP spokesperson told the outlet that inmates in BOP custody who have not yet completed their respective sentence "may be outside BOP custody for a period of time for court hearings, medical treatment or for other reasons."

Thus, it was previously believed that La Barbie would be a key witness in the trial in a New York court against Mexico's former public security secretary Genaro Garcia Luna, who was charged with a drug trafficking conspiracy.

However, the Beltran Leyva Cartel leader did not testify, even though his name was brought up during the testimonies of other witnesses, Borderland Beat reported. A Mexican police officer testified that he saw a meeting attended by La Barbie, Garcia Luna, and the late Beltran Leyva Cartel boss, Arturo Beltran Leyva.

However, Garcia Luna has denied ever meeting a drug cartel figure. The prosecution and defense teams have already given their closing arguments earlier this week, and the decision about Garcia Luna's innocence goes to the jury.

On the same day, Borderland Beat reported that La Barbie's status on the BOP's website was updated, showing that he is back at the high-security federal prison USP Coleman 2 in Florida, where he had been serving his prison sentence before he vanished from the U.S. federal prison system last November.

No one knew why he did not testify against Garcia Luna. However, one possible reason would be his not getting witness protection or sentence reduction in exchange for his testimony, or his testimony would be similar to others witnesses. It could also be that he has changed his mind.

Mexico Expressed Concerns on the Reported Unknown Whereabouts of Beltran Leyva Cartel Leader La Barbie

Mexico previously expressed grave concern about the whereabouts of Edgar Valdez Villareal and demanded to know where he was.

Amid the news that La Barbie was "missing," the Mexican Attorney General's Office and Secretariat of Foreign Affairs have both told El Pais that they also do not know where the former leader of the now-defunct Beltran-Leyva Cartel was.

One of La Barbie's lawyers also told CNN that he did not know about a possible release and gave no other comments. Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said at the time that they had already requested the U.S. for information on La Barbie's whereabouts.

The president added there were also complaints filed against La Barbie in Mexico. For his part, Mexico's Secretary of Foreign Affairs Marcelo Ebrard noted that he also had no confirmation whether or not La Barbie had been released.

Former Beltran Leyva Cartel Leader La Barbie

Edgar Valdez Villarreal is one of Mexico's most violent drug cartel leaders. Originally from Texas, the Mexican-American left a trail of dismembered and decapitated bodies in Mexico's streets, hanged corpses from bridges, and committed other crimes as a part of the Beltran Leyva Cartel.

According to LMT, La Barbie grew up as an average teenager who played football at United High School in Laredo, Texas. However, he started selling marijuana, which led him to become involved with the Beltran Leyva Cartel, whose leaders were associated with Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman Loera at the time.

La Barbie soon climbed the ranks, eventually becoming a high-ranking lieutenant before leading the Beltran Leyva Cartel following the death of its leader Arturo Beltran Leyva in 2009. From there, he lived a flashy lifestyle using drug money. He owned luxury homes, expensive cars, and even a lion for a pet.

La Barbie was eventually arrested and pleaded guilty in 2016 to various charges, including conspiracy to import cocaine, conspiracy to distribute cocaine, and conspiracy to launder money.

He was sentenced in June 2018 to 49 years and one month in prison and fined $192,000. The former Beltran Leyva Cartel leader is expected to remain in prison until 2056.

This article is owned by Latin Post

Written by: Mary Webber

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