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Indigenous & Latina Women & Children's Human Rights News from the Americas 


 

 
Latin America
Women & Children at Risk
 

The United States and Mexico Act to Arrest Child Sex Trafficking Gang Mentioned in Recent New York Times Article by Peter Landesman

 

LibertadLatina.org note: The below two articles describe the breakup by police in Mexico and New York of the violent child kidnapping, rape and prostitution family-run enterprise known at "Los Lenones (The Lenons).  This mafia-style child sex trafficking network was first described to the public in the below article by journalist Peter Landesman.

Thank you Peter Landesman for your brave work!

- Chuck Goolsby

LibertadLatina.org

February 25, 2005


January 25, 2004 - New York Times prints major story on the Mexico to U.S. sex trafficking of Latina and European women & girls.


February 23, 2004 - Recent NewYork Times article on Mexico to U.S. child sex trafficking causes uproar from Slate.com.


January 9, 2004 - NY Times Editorial: Governments in the Americas [including the U.S.] have not focused enough attention on [especially Latina American] human trafficking.  

 
1) Title: Mexican officials arrest suspects in New York-linked sex slavery ring
Publisher: (c) 2004 Associated Press
Author: John Rice
Publish Date: 2004-02-23
 
2) Title: Mexican police arrest members of prostitution ring with N.Y. ties
Publisher: (c) 2004 EFE
Author: John Rice
Publish Date: 2004-02-23

1) Mexican officials arrest suspects in New York-linked sex slavery ring
 
MEXICO CITY -- A gang that seduced or kidnapped females and then forced them into prostitution in Mexico and in New York has been crushed by arrests on both sides of the border, Mexican officials said Monday.

Mexican federal agents arrested six people in this country this month in an operation linked to the January arrests of four others in the Queens borough of New York, the federal Interior Department said in a news release.

Authorities were hunting for at least six other people, some of them "highly dangerous," according to the statement.

The department, which oversees security and immigration matters, said the gang seduced or kidnapped girls and women aged 12 to 25, raped them and then forced them to work as prostitutes in the central Mexican cities of Puebla and Tenancingo.

Some were later taken to the United States for prostitution there.

The department said the gang threatened to kill the victims or their relatives if they tried to escape.

The agency did not say how many women might have been victimized but said they have come from at least nine Mexico cities, including Mexico City, Acapulco, Guadalajara and Puerto Escondido.

In January, U.S. federal agents in New York arrested Josue Flores Carreto and his brother Gerardo Flores Carreto, their cousin Eliu Carreto Fernandez and a friend, Daniel Perez Alonso, as well as five women who they said had been working as prostitutes.

A complaint filed on Jan. 20 by the U.S. Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement said the women had walked through the desert to reach the United States.

It said they had been living with the arrested men and gave them their earnings from prostitution - money that was sent back to Mexico.

The mother of the Flores Carreto brothers, Consuelo Carreto Valencia, was arrested in Tenancingo in early February. Also captured there or in Mexico City were Maria de los Angeles Velasquez, Gustavo Carreto Valencia, Jose Manuel Martin del Campo, Crispin Ortiz Hernandez and Jose Antonio Espinosa Barreto.

 

 
 
2) Mexican police arrest members of prostitution ring with N.Y. ties

Mexico City - Mexican authorities announced Monday they arrested 10 members of a gang that recruited young women aged 12 to 25 under false pretenses and forced them to prostitute themselves in New York.

The "Los Lenones" gang operates in at least nine cities across Mexico, a government comunique released Monday said.

The Interior Ministry and the Attorney General's Office launched a police operation on Feb. 10 and arrested 10 members of "a network that smuggled women to the United States to engage in prostitution."

Four men were arrested in New York and four undocumented Mexican women, who were being forced to have sex, were rescued.

Six people were arrested in Mexico and 15 porn movies, numerous documents and photographs of the victims were seized, the communique said.
The women had been abducted or "courted" by members of the gang or recruited by Consuelo Carreto to work as servants in her home.

The women were then raped and forced to work as prostitutes in brothels owned by the Flores Carreto family and then smuggled into the United States.

Money earned by the prostitutes was deposited in bank accounts belonging to gang members, who threatened to kill the women and their relatives if they did not comply.

They were also forced to sign blank pieces of paper that could then be used when the need arose to file affidavits denying that the gang had any responsibility in their plight, the communique said.

"A large number of highly dangerous people have yet to be arrested," and so far the investigations "implicate people-smugglers with highly organized crime structures," the document concluded.

 
 
 
     

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Noticias de Dic., 2008

Dec. 2008 News

(News Added During Dec., 2008)



Added: Dec. 3, 2008

Texas, USA

Rescued immigrants claim kidnapping, rape, torture

Edinburg - Mario Olivares Cifuentes thought he understood the risks of illegally crossing the U.S.-Mexico border.

Tales of migrants drowning in the Rio Grande or succumbing to the oppressive South Texas sun spread frequently among those hoping to make the trek.

But for Olivares, a Guatemalan migrant, the real danger emerged only after passing those natural perils.

For almost a day, he and 20 of his countrymen [and women] were allegedly kidnapped, tortured, raped and held for ransom in a stash house east of Edinburg before federal agents rescued them last week.

Their purported tormentors - a group of Mexican nationals believed to have abducted the immigrants from another smuggling organization - are set to appear before a federal judge today...

According to Sanchez' affidavit, the migrants were guided to an Hidalgo stash house Nov. 24 after crossing the Rio Grande with a group of coyotes.

But within an hour of their arrival, five armed men burst into the building and abducted them. The men guided the Guatemalans to another location, where they reportedly turned their weapons on their victims.

The men threatened the immigrants' lives if they could not secure ransoms from family members in the United States and abroad, the Guatemalans later told agents.

Olivares reported being tied up overnight and beaten by the men, according to court filings. Three... women said they were taken into back rooms and raped by their captors...

Jeremy Roebuck

The Monitor

Dec. 2, 2008


Added: Dec. 3, 2008

Virginia, USA

Man Pleads Guilty to Rape of Girl, 10

A 32-year-old man pleaded guilty in Prince William Circuit Court on Monday to raping a 10-year-old girl.

Jose Abel Zelaya-Ascencio, of no fixed address, was charged with raping the girl at her family’s home in the 7500 block of Alleghany Court on Oct. 22, 2007.

According to court testimony Monday, the girl was awakened at 5:35 a.m. that morning when Zelaya-Ascencio broke into the house and went into her bedroom.

The girl, who was home alone with her 7-year-old brother, said she tried to get away, but Zelaya-Ascencio overpowered her and raped her, police said...

Amanda Stewart

Inside Northern Virginia

Dec. 1, 2008


Added: Dec. 3, 2008

Peru

En Iquitos discuten acciones para combatir explotación sexual infantil

Meeting in Iquitos discusses measures to the combat sexual exploitation of children

As part of World Day to Combat HIV / AIDS, in the city of Iquitos, a meeting will be held to exchange intervention strategies in regard to youth who are vulnerable to commercial sexual exploitation.

The primary purpose of the event is to develop strategies to reduce sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), and to promote healthy sexual behaviors...

The meeting will also enable the development of recommendations through which state and civil society entities in Iquitos can work to develop prevention, care, recovery and punishment of the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents.

En Iquitos discuten acciones para combatir explotación sexual infantil En el marco del Día Mundial de la Lucha contra el VIH/Sida, hoy viernes se realiza en la ciudad de Iquitos (Loreto) una reunión de intercambio de experiencias de intervención con adolescentes y jóvenes en situación de vulnerabilidad a la explotación sexual comercial.

La finalidad de la actividad es desarrollar acciones dirigidas a la reducción de infecciones de transmisión sexual (ITS) y promover conductas sexuales saludables.

El evento es organizado por el Fondo Global, a través del Consorcio de la Macrorregión Oriente, integrada por Acción por los Niños, la universidad Cayetano Heredia y la fundación ADAR.

SUR Noticias

Dec. 1, 2008


Added: Dec. 3, 2008

Texas, USA

Por pornografía infantil sentencian a empleado de Diócesis católica

Catholic Diocese employee sentenced for child pornography

[See also the related November 24, 2008 English language story from U.S. ICE, posted on this page.]

Roger García tenía en su computadora más de 30 video de niños no mayores de 14 años sosteniendo relaciones sexuales con adultos

Una sentencia de 7 años y medio recibió en una corte federal un empleado de la Diócesis católica local, declarado culpable de posesion de pornografia infantil el pasado mes de agosto.

Se trata de Roger García, de 47 años , quien se desempeñaba como gerente de construcciones de la Administracion de la Iglesia Católica. Fue aprehendido tres dias después de recibir cargos formales.

El Mañana.com

Dec. 1, 2008


Added: Dec. 3, 2008

Costa Rica, United States

Costa Rica: Acusado de violar sobrina política Llegó tico deportado de Estados Unidos

Man accused of raping his underage niece-in-law is deported from the U.S. to Costa Rica

Costa Rican citizen James Duran Vilchez, who was arrested by the International Police agency Interpol in the state of Virginia, United States, arrived on Saturday in Costa Rica after being deported to face criminal charges.

Duran Vilchez is wanted for the crime of sexually abusing his wife's niece between 1997 and 1999.

A fugitive team in Virginia arrested Duran Vilchez in October, while he was heading to work.

The Criminal Tribunal of the Second Judicial Circuit in San Jose had issued several arrest warrants against Duran Vilchez since March 2007. A recently issued international warrant lead to his arrest in the U.S.

El tico James Durán Vílchez, quien fue detenido por la Policía Internacional (Interpol) en el estado de Virginia, Estados Unidos, llegó el sábado anterior al país luego de ser deportado para hacerle frente a las acusaciones penales en su contra.

El hombre es requerido por el delito de abusos sexuales en perjuicio de su sobrina política, hechos que ocurrieron entre 1997 y 1999 cuando se aprovechó de su condición para abusar sexualmente de la menor.

El Equipo de Rastreo de Fugitivos de Estados Unidos realizó el arresto en octubre anterior, cuando el costarricense salía de su casa en el estado de Virginia y se dirigía hacia su trabajo.

Odilie Alpízar

Presnsa Libre

Dec. 1, 2008



Noticias de Nov., 2008

Nov. 2008 News

(News Added During Nov., 2008)



Added: Dec. 3, 2008

Indiana, USA

Lake Station man gets probation for sexual battery

Lake Superior Court Judge Diane Ross Boswell sentenced a former Lake Station man to 18 months of probation for sexual battery. Edgar Lopez Sanchez, 23, of Clarksville, pleaded guilty but mentally ill to the class D felony in August.

He was taken to the Lake County Jail on a detainer warrant issued by immigration officials because Sanchez is in the country illegally. He faces deportation proceedings on Dec. 1.

Sanchez originally had been charged with rape and faced a maximum 20-year sentence on the charge, which was dismissed Wednesday.

The Post Tribune

Nov. 27, 2008


Added: Dec. 3, 2008

Texas, USA

Laredo man receives 7½-year prison sentence for possessing child pornography

Vea tambien: Por pornografía infantil sentencian a empleado de Diócesis católica

Laredo, Texas - A local man was sentenced Monday to 7½ years in federal prison for possessing child pornography. This sentence was announced by acting U.S. Attorney Tim Johnson, Southern District of Texas, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Special Agent in Charge Jerry Robinette.

Roger Garcia, 47, was sentenced Nov. 24 to 90 months in prison by U.S. District Judge Micaela Alvarez. After he completes his prison sentence, Garcia will also be subject to a 10-year term of supervised release. While on supervised release the court ordered Garcia to comply with the following special conditions: he must register as a sex offender; he will be prohibited from using the Internet; and he is prohibited from working directly with anyone under 18 years old.

Garcia was indicted July 8 and was arrested three days later. He has been in custody since he pleaded guilty to the charges in August.

U.S. ICE

Nov. 24, 2008


Added: Dec. 3, 2008

Texas, USA

A system's fatal flaws

Thousands of inmates admit they're in the U.S. illegally, but even those convicted of violent crimes are often released right back onto Houston's streets

...Dozens of suspected criminals who told jailers they were in the country illegally are freed on bail, later abscond and are accused of more crimes, or even vanish.

Many suspected [undocumented] immigrants convicted of crimes from prostitution to sexual abuse avoid prison time by being sentenced to probation...

• Armando De La Cruz, a Mexican national, told jailers on two occasions in 2007 that he was undocumented. Both times, he was convicted of assaulting his wife and released after serving his jail time. De La Cruz is now back in Harris County Jail, charged with raping a woman at knife point behind a southeast Houston apartment complex in July, and attempting to rape another woman less than a week later. His defense attorney, Ricardo Gonzalez, did not return phone calls.

• Pedro Alvarez, a convicted sex offender from El Salvador who was first deported in 1991, racked up eight convictions in Harris County over a span of two decades and was allowed to walk free from jail multiple times — as recently as the spring of 2007. Immigration officials finally charged him with re-entry after deportation in February. Sandra Zamora Zayas, the attorney who represented Alvarez in federal court in South Texas, did not return phone messages.

"It's just amazing how long it took them to catch up with him," the mother of a 5-year-old girl Alvarez sexually assaulted in 1988 said in an interview with the Chronicle, after learning about Alvarez's extended criminal history.

Susan Carroll

Houston Chronicle

Nov. 16, 2008


Added: Nov. 27, 2008

Guatemala

Discriminación racial y económica afectan a niñas

Las niñas indígenas del área rural de Guatemala tienen hoy pocas oportunidades de desarrollo escolar por su condición étnica y económica, según la Organización de Naciones Unidas para la Educación, la Ciencia y la Cultura (UNESCO).

Racial and economic discrimination affects Girls

Indigenous girls in rural areas of Guatemala today have few opportunities for educational development because of their ethnicity and economic status, according to a report by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).

The study by UNESCO reveals the disadvantages that indigenous children face in their ability access the right to attend school, especially for girls.

According to the report, there are profound disparities in Guatemala for socio-economic reasons, and due to one's place of residence, language and gender. In remote regions in the country there are no schools, or the likelihood that children will not attend or will desert school are very high.

Only 54% of indigenous 7-year-old girls have entered primary school, compared to 71% percent of indigenous boys the same age and 75 percent of non-indigenous children.

Although there have been some forward steps made, the country still shows large deficits relative to the rest of the continent.

Many parents choose to send boys to school, so that they will eventually contribute money to the family.

At the same time, there is a prejudice that believes that females are predestined to marry, where they will live under the tutelage of her husband. Therefore, they do not need an education. [This concept exists in many regions of Latin America.]

The present government is attempting to reverse this pattern by offering resources to the poorest families, but only if those families send their children to school and allow them to have health checkups.

Un estudio elaborado por la institución revela las desventajas de la infancia indígena para acceder a los servicios escolares, en particular si pertenece al sexo femenino.

De acuerdo con el texto, en Guatemala existen profundas disparidades por razones socio-económicas, por el lugar de domicilio, el idioma y el género, las cuales obstaculizan el proceso de enseñanza y aprendizaje.

En los sitios remotos del país no existen escuelas o las posibilidades de que los infantes no acudan o deserten son muy altas.

El caso es más grave en las niñas de las etnias originarias pues sólo el 54 por ciento de quienes tienen siete años ingresan a la primaria, comparado con el 71 por ciento de varones de la misma edad y 75 por ciento de las no indígenas, precisa la UNESCO.

Aunque se dieron algunos pasos de avance, el país todavía muestra grandes rezagos en relación con el resto del continente, según el documento presentado la víspera en Ginebra, Suiza, y conocido hoy aquí.

En este fenómeno inciden la situación de pobreza y algunos patrones sociales de conducta, pues muchos padres optan por enviar a la escuela a los varones para que hallen pronto un empleo y contribuyan al sostenimiento del hogar.

Además, existe el prejuicio de que las hembras están predestinadas al matrimonio, donde vivirán bajo la tutela de su esposo y por ello no precisan de mayor instrucción.

El gobierno actual intenta revertir esta situación con la transferencia de recursos a las familias más pobres a cambio de enviar a sus hijos a la escuela y someterlos a revisiones médicas en los puestos de salud.

Prensa Latina

Nov. 26, 2008


Added: Nov. 25, 2008

Florida

ICE arrests four sex traffickers and rescues nine trafficking victims who were forced into prostitution in several South Florida brothels

Miami - R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Anthony V. Mangione, Special Agent in Charge, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced today that Arturo-Rojas-Gonzalez, Elodia Capilla-Diego, Fidel Gutierrez-Gonzalez, and Rosalio Valdez-Nava were arrested on Wednesday for sex trafficking of women in several bro