Purported Zeta lieutenant appears in federal court in Brownsville

BROWNSVILLE — Wearing an orange jumpsuit, handcuffs and shackles, a man who sources say is a top Zeta lieutenant proudly strode into a courtroom, stood before a federal magistrate judge and entered a plea of not guilty to the charge of illegal re-entry to the United States.

One of his alleged hit men also went before the judge and pleaded not guilty.

Oscar “El Apache” Castillo Flores,  also known as Arturo Castillo, 33, and Jose Ezequiel Galicia Gonzalez, went before U.S. Magistrate Judge Felix Recio for their arraignment on the immigration charge of illegal re-entry. Galicia, also handcuffed and shackled, wore a pair of khaki pants and a blue shirt.

Recio informed them of deadlines for their attorneys to file motions and scheduled jury selection in their case for October.

Castillo and Galicia were arrested in Brownsville in July during a joint operation that included U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations, the FBI, U.S. Border Patrol and Brownsville police.

During that operation, authorities also arrested Luis Alberto Blanco Flores, 30, who was identified as a member of Castillo’s group. Blanco’s arraignment has not been set.

In a previous hearing before Recio, prosecutors testified that Galicia had tried to commit suicide by slashing his throat and wrists. Galicia testified then that he was just trying to get in touch with his wife because it wasn’t safe for them to go to Mexico. He said his father had been kidnapped and his house burned down.

Law enforcement officials in Mexico said Castillo led his band of hit men in a series of recent border firefights, including the shootout at the Matamoros municipal police station on June 9 in which seven city police officers were killed.

According to a source with firsthand knowledge of criminal activity in Mexico who asked not to be identified for security reasons, Beto Fabe, the brother of Castillo, was the head of the Gulf Cartel in Matamoros but also cooperated with the Zetas by letting Castillo operate in Matamoros.

After Beto Fabe was killed under orders of the Gulf Cartel, Oscar Castillo and a group of hit men including Blanco and Galicia began openly attacking Gulf Cartel and police assets, the source said.

The Zetas began as a group of Mexican special forces troops who switched sides and became the armed wing of the Gulf Cartel. In February, they split from the Gulf Cartel and began a bloody struggle with their erstwhile allies over drug smuggling routes through northern Mexico into the United States.

A few days after the arrest of Castillo, Blanco and Galicia in Brownsville, 15 bodies with signs of torture were dropped along a Matamoros highway. Each of the bodies reportedly had a large “Z” painted on the back, and sources have said the men were part of Castillo’s group.

About the same time, the Mexican navy announced that it had arrested a dozen Zetas at a motel in San Fernando, a town about 100 miles southwest of Brownsville. All 12 reportedly were part of Castillo’s group. Authorities have said those 12 were among the 14 men killed three weeks ago in a confrontation at the Matamoros State Prison.

The source also said the Gulf Cartel is offering a large reward to take out Castillo.