By MARK STEVENSON
Associated Press Writer
MEXICO CITY- A new Mexican drug-trafficking coalition headed by three top kingpins works as a partnership in moving narcotics and battling for turf, but has no single leader, a U.S. official said Thursday.
The coalition is so powerful that law enforcement officials now dub it simply “The Alliance,” or “The Federation,” and it appears to be the most worrisome criminal force in Mexico, said the official, speaking on the customary condition of anonymity.
“I think the alliance right now is the force to be reckoned with,” he said.
The partnership involves Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and Juan Jose “El Azul” Esparragoza, all described as sophisticated leaders.
“These guys are not just bums off the street,” the official said. “If they were hired by General Motors, they could be CEOs.”
The group, or one like it, may have been involved in the recent shipment of almost 5 tons (4.55 metric tons) of cocaine seized by police off Mexico’s southern Pacific coast.
“We don’t think there’s one trafficker responsible for five tons of cocaine,” he said. “We believe that they each put up so much to get much ... so if there is a loss of that magnitude, it’s absorbed by different factions.”
The official said efforts to intercept drugs have been focused on sea routes through the Pacific and the Caribbean.
“The key to interdiction is to get it before its hits the ground,” he said. “Once it hits the ground in Mexico, you might as well say it’s in the United States.”