Post by HeadMarshal on Nov 18, 2013 10:21:47 GMT -5
(Above photo credit: justice.gov)
Fugitive Profile as of August 18th, 2014 (Based on US Marshals poster):
Sex: Male
Race: White
DOB: 8/25/1986
Place of Birth: Chihuahua, Mexico
Height: 5'6
Weight: 245 lbs
Eyes: Brown
Hair: Black
Who to call if you've seen him: If you have any information on the whereabouts of Villalobos, please contact the United States Marshals Service for the district of New Mexico (505) 346-6400/Albuquerque or (575) 527-6850/Las Cruces
Ignacio "Nachito" Villalobos is the last 2013 MW List Contender I'm making a thread on for the year. His case should hopefully be quite interesting.
Ignacio Villalobos was a member of La Linea, the enforcement wing of the Juarez Drug Cartel. He set up an operation with city officials in the small border village of Columbus, New Mexico across the border from Puerto Palomas, Chihuahua, Mexico. Ian Garland was the owner of Chaparral Guns, and Villalobos's crew would purchase numerous 9 mm, 380 mm and AK-47 type pistols and rifles from Chaparral Guns and other stores, signing false identification on ATF forms. Tactical gear was also purchased, including body armor. The indictment mentioned that over 250 weapons were obtained with the intent to be smuggled into Mexico. 12 weapons were recovered in Mexico.
Arrests were made in March 2011 including; Eddie Espinoza, the mayor of Columbus; Angelo Vega, the Police Chief; and Blas Gutierrez, the trustee. Seven other people were arrested, including Ian Garland. Recently, Vega, Espinoza and Gutierrez, among others pled guilty. Interestingly, the gun smugglers in Columbus somehow ended up with some weapons connected to the infamous "Fast and Furious Operation" which ended up smuggling guns to the Sinaloa Drug Cartel.
Thoughts? Villalobos is still wanted in connection with this. He's probably in Chihuahua, Mexico somewhere, likely Ciudad Juarez or Chihuahua City.
www.usmarshals.gov/district/nm/fugitives/pdf/vo/vo-villalobos.pdf
narcosphere.narconews.com/userfiles/70/2011-03-10_villalobos_indictment.pdf
www.borderlandbeat.com/2011/03/shocked-and-saddened.html
www.lcsun-news.com/las_cruces-news/ci_24258034/questions-linger-after-columbus-n-m-gun-smuggling
UPDATE from site admin: As of July 27th, 2018, Villalobos is still listed on the DEA website as one of their most wanted fugitives: www.dea.gov/fugitives/elp/68E904B9-60AF-4903-9967-A734F044A1D6.shtml
Admin Note: If you have any news-related updates on this case, please contact us here: amwfans.com/thread/1662/website-contact-form
