A top leader of the Zetas drug cartel was arrested in northern Mexico Wednesday as part of a massive operation in which authorities seized 27.5 tons of marijuana and freed 36 kidnap victims. Officials confirm Carlos Oliva Castillo, also known as “La rana,” was taken into custody without incident at a safe house in Saltillo. Cartel members attempted to lure authorities away from Castillo’s location by attacking forces in other parts of the city, but the ploy failed.
Castillo ran Zetas operations in the states of Coahuila, Nuevo Leon and Tamaulipas. He is believed to be responsible for ordering the deadly torching of a casino in the city of Monterrey in August. Fifty-two people died in the blaze. Castillo apparently ordered the arson because the casino owner refused to comply with extortion demands.
Castillo is No. 3 in the cartel leadership structure and is a close confidant of top boss Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano.
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