Mexican Pirates Robbing U.S. Fisherman

[S4fanatic]

The coast of Somalia isn't the only pirate-infested danger zone for anglers. Now it seems fishing along the US-Mexico border is becoming increasingly hazardous to your health.

From the story in the San Antonio Express-News:

Heavily armed Mexican freshwater pirates have been shaking down U.S. boaters on Falcon Lake, a reservoir and bass fishing haven that straddles the Rio Grande. At least three such incidents have been reported since April 30, the latest on Sunday, according to a Texas Department of Public Safety warning issued Tuesday that linked the muggings to northern Mexico's increasing lawlessness. According to descriptions of the incidents, the robbers — in at least one case posing as Mexican federal law enforcement officers — searched fishermen's boats for guns and drugs, then demanded cash at gunpoint.

One of the incidents reportedly occurred on the U.S. side of the lake. “The robbers are believed to be members of a drug trafficking organization or members of an enforcer group linked to a drug trafficking organization who are ... using AK-47s or AR-15 rifles to threaten their victims,” the DPS statement said. “They appear to be using local Mexican fishermen to operate the boats to get close to American fishermen.” It was unclear why sport fishermen were targeted, but the warning comes only a few weeks before bass fishing tournaments that are among the South Texas border region's biggest tourist draws.

DPS spokesman Tom Vinger said the warning was issued in part because of the upcoming tournaments. Zapata County Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez said he would be discussing security concerns with tournament participants and has been reviewing protective measures with the DPS Border Security Operations Center and the region's Fusion Center, a federal information clearinghouse for terrorism prevention and response.

Reported victims included:

• Five people in two boats who were approached by four tattooed men April 30 claiming to be “federales” near the church at Old Guerrero, a once-submerged town on the Mexican side of the lake. The men boarded their boats, demanded cash and asked “where are the drugs?” They then took $200 from the Americans and followed the boats until they re-entered U.S. waters.

http://www.fieldandstream.com/blogs/...exas-bass-lake

just wow.

[Artos]

I grew up on Falcon and learned fresh water fishing with my granddad...my uncle has his old place at Los Lobos in zapate Co...it is a HUGE body of water & one of the states best tourney bass fishing hot spots.

http://www.themonitor.com/articles/robbing-38763-cartel-zapata.html

Cartel pirates robbing fishermen on Falcon Lake

ZAPATA — Texas authorities warn boaters to stay on the U.S. side of Falcon Lake after three recent confrontations between fishermen and suspected drug cartel members.

No injuries were reported in connection with any of the three recent incidents. During each of the encounters, groups of men armed with assault rifles confronted boaters, looking for drugs and money, troopers said.

The Texas Department of Public Safety issued a bulletin Tuesday that outlined the three confrontations. The most recent occurred Sunday on the U.S. side of the lake, which spans the state’s border with Mexico, authorities said.

“We suggest they stay on this side and not go into Mexico for their own safety,” said Capt. Fernando Cervantes with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Service in Zapata. “If anything happens in Mexico, we cannot go over to Mexico.”

The first incident occurred April 30 when five people in two boats were fishing on the lake and visited Old Guerrero, a Mexican city abandoned when the reservoir was created in the 1950s. The group was taking pictures of the church and other submerged buildings at the site when four heavily tattooed men appeared in boats and climbed aboard the fishermen’s vessels. The intruders claimed they were “Federales” — Mexican federal police — but had no uniforms, troopers said.

The men boarded the boats, demanded cash and asked for drugs. The fishermen handed over $200 to the pirates, who followed the two boats back toward U.S. waters but did not cross the border.

Tom Bendele, owner of Falcon Lake Tackle in Zapata, said he met with the fishermen after the confrontation. The men told him the confrontation lasted nearly 40 minutes and that one of the pirates had Zs tattooed around his neck — a typical identifier of the Zetas, one of the two dominant cartels in northeast Mexico.

The pirates let the group go “pretty much unvarnished” after the fishermen offered the cash, but the gunmen took the memory card from their digital camera, Bendele said.

“It’s really a shame, too, because I like the other side better,” Bendele said. “There’s a bunch of good structures over there to fish.”

During the second reported incident, May 6, three fishermen were about a quarter of a mile from Marker 14 on the north side of Salado Island, above some submerged ruins, troopers said. As they were fishing, two men in a boat quickly approached and pointed AR-15 assault rifles toward the anglers. One of the gunmen boarded the boat, looking for cash, drugs and firearms.

One of the attackers chambered a round in his assault rifle and said he would shoot the men if they did not give him money.

The marauders stole about $400 during that incident, Bendele said.

“That was more of a robbery to me than the first one,” he said.

And on Sunday, law enforcement officers received a report that a vessel carrying five armed men had approached some boaters. Investigators have not found the boaters to obtain details about the incident, which apparently occurred on the U.S. side of the lake.

Zapata County Sheriff Sigifredo “Sigi” Gonzalez said the first suspected cartel pirate hijacking he heard of occurred about six weeks ago, when a group of fishermen had their boat stolen and were left naked on the Mexican side with only a cell phone to call for help.

“Falcon Lake is considered one of the best bass fishing lakes in the nation,” the sheriff said. “It’s a shame this is happening.”

The lake is a popular destination — especially among Rio Grande Valley anglers — for fishing for largemouth bass and other freshwater fish. Several bass fishing tournaments are scheduled in the coming weeks, and DPS officials said they worry anglers could be in danger if they cross to Mexican waters, which are largely unpatrolled and unregulated.

Fishing guides and bait shop owners in Zapata said the attacks could hurt their business if they continue into the fall.

Summer is the slow season for fishing on the lake, with anglers typically preferring the cooler temperatures and calmer winds of the fall and winter months, said Bendele, who has owned the bait shop for the past three years. One upcoming tournament has already relocated after organizers heard about the attacks.

“It’s definitely not going to be good for business,” Bendele said. “I’m glad this didn’t happen in our heyday.”

Robert Amaya has owned and operated Robert’s Fish and Tackle in Zapata the past six years, he said. Besides selling bait, Amaya guides fishermen on the lake for $400 per day.

But since February, when cartel violence began to heat up south of the border, he has been taking anglers only on the U.S. side of the lake, he said.

“Hopefully it doesn’t get worse,” Amaya said. “This is all we have, how we make a living. It’s kind of a tough deal.”

[FromMyColdDeadHand]

Sounds like they need a Q-ship bass boat.

[arbob]

Sounds like they need a Q-ship bass boat.

This:mad:

Maybe its time to reconstitute the Republic of Texas Navy.

[Irish]

What are the maritime laws concerning piracy in fresh water? I hope it says to shoot the ****ers.

[kaiservontexas]

Assuming fresh water would not be some international zone, so, the big question becomes does Texas' castle doctrine apply? I would not think so since the border is a federal zone.

Bass Q-Boats! Now that would be funny. Think we can mount one of those deck guns? Or should we hide a punt gun under a tarp? But then we would have to make sure to turn into them to fire the punt gun.

I wish we could own the RPGs they claim are sold in our gun shows.

[texag]

Sounds like an M4c fishing trip is in order just on the Texas side of the lake.

5.56 is a great topwater lure, right?

[Alex V]

Would a boat work under the same rules ar ur car in Tx? What are the laws about firearms onboard boats?

Would defending yourself against 5 guys with AKs and ARs even be worth it? I say crank over that Mercury and get the f out of there as soon as you see a boat comming your way.

This is getting silly... now Texans have to worry about Mexican Pirates when all they want to do is catch a few fish... Unreal...

[GermanSynergy]

Taking the bass that Americans won't......:rolleyes:

[GermanSynergy]

This:mad:

Maybe its time to reconstitute the Republic of Texas Navy.

That would be awesome... :cool:

[FromMyColdDeadHand]

Sounds like some of the issues are mainly on the Mex side of the lake. I'd rather shoot it out with the Mex Feds than spend time in a Mexican prison for gun possession. Actually I'd rather just drink beer on the dock and get fish and chips at a good bar.

Aren't the Mexicans the ones who say the border doesn't matter? :rolleyes:

[Artos]

Would a boat work under the same rules ar ur car in Tx? What are the laws about firearms onboard boats?

Would defending yourself against 5 guys with AKs and ARs even be worth it? I say crank over that Mercury and get the f out of there as soon as you see a boat comming your way.

This is getting silly... now Texans have to worry about Mexican Pirates when all they want to do is catch a few fish... Unreal...

I discussed this with a game warden buddy of mine today...they indeed are heavily armed from the reports he's gone over but no one has been able to 100% confirm they are cartel. The boats used so far just crawl compared to the average bass rig. It's a good thing the word is getting out cuz stubborn bass fisherman will continue to go into mexican waters and they should be able to high-tail it out in plenty of time unless they get caught back in a cove or break down God forbid.

The problem is the occaisional party family barge that isn't paying attention or still considers this planet a disney fantasy.



Sounds like some of the issues are mainly on the Mex side of the lake. I'd rather shoot it out with the Mex Feds than spend time in a Mexican prison for gun possession. Actually I'd rather just drink beer on the dock and get fish and chips at a good bar.

Aren't the Mexicans the ones who say the border doesn't matter? :rolleyes:

Again, the friggin lake is huge & larger than many counties in the U.S....there are big concrete markers that run the length showing the 'general' idea of the border. There simply is no need to go across and ask for trouble. Perfectly safe and tons of room to play on our side of the street.

[Irish]

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/05/29/pirates-threaten-boats-mexico-border-lake/

ZAPATA, Texas – The waters of Falcon Lake normally beckon boaters with waterskiing and world-record bass fishing. But this holiday weekend, fishermen on the waters that straddle the U.S.-Mexico border are on the lookout for something more sinister: pirates.

Twice in recent weeks, fishermen have been robbed at gunpoint by marauders that the local sheriff says are "spillover" from fighting between rival Mexican drug gangs.

Boaters are concerned about their safety, and the president of the local Chamber of Commerce is trying to assure people that everything's fine on the U.S. side of the lake.

At the fishing camp his family has owned for 50 years, Jack Cox now sleeps with a loaded shotgun at his feet and a handgun within reach.

In the American waters, Cox said, "you're safer, but you're not safe." Mexican commercial fishermen regularly cross to set their nets illegally, why wouldn't gunmen do the same? he asked.

Two weeks ago, the Texas Department of Public Safety warned boaters to avoid the international boundary that zig-zags through the lake, which is 25 miles long and 3 miles across at its widest point. Authorities also urged anyone on the water to notify relatives of their boating plans to aid law enforcement in case of trouble.

Since issuing the warning, most boats have stayed on the U.S. side.

"That's a good indication. It means they're getting the message," Texas Parks and Wildlife Capt. Fernando Cervantes said Thursday as he patrolled with two other game wardens. "They're still coming out, but they're not going across."

The border is marked by 14 partially submerged concrete towers that mark the Rio Grande's path before the lake was created in 1954.

Game wardens and the U.S. Border Patrol watch over the lake but do not cross into Mexican waters, and no Mexican law enforcement is visible.

Men armed with assault rifles robbed fishermen on the Mexican side of Falcon Lake on April 30 and May 6. They traveled in the low-slung, underpowered commercial Mexican fishing boats that are familiar here. They asked for money, drugs and guns, and took what cash was available. No one was hurt.

A third incident happened a couple of days before the warning was issued, but Cervantes said the fishermen were able to escape without the thieves boarding their boat.

The attacks "were really unusual," Cervantes said. "We had never seen it, and then they started up."

Violence on the Mexican side of the lake has been climbing for several months.

A fractured partnership between the region's dominant Gulf Cartel and its former enforcers, the Zetas, plunged many of the area's Mexican border cities into violence. Police stations were attacked, officers killed and rolling gun battles between the gangs and with the Mexican military became commonplace.

"To me, this is spillover violence," Zapata County Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez Jr. said. "I don't do the Chamber of Commerce talk. I talk reality."

Still, the sheriff says, boaters should safe provided they stay on the American side.

Cox, 81, says it was only a matter of time before the violence from Mexico crept onto the water. And the idea that gunmen looking to score easy cash from fishermen would not cross the lake's imaginary boundary doesn't make sense, he said.

That perspective is what worries Chamber of Commerce President Paco Mendoza.

"What's keeping our town alive is our lake," Mendoza said. In recent years, drilling in the county's oilfields has virtually stopped, and the wells are no longer producing like they once did. In those days, oilfield workers packed Zapata's restaurants and hotels, he said.

So Zapata increasingly looks to the lake for economic growth. Five fishing tournaments are scheduled between now and July, and a few big ones are set for next year.

"As far as we know, all of our contracts are still in play," Mendoza said.

Falcon Lake landed on the national map of fishing destinations after the 2008 Bassmaster Elite Series tournament, where bass-fishing world records were broken.

The pirate warning could hurt businesses that depend on the lake, "but anglers will continue to come to Falcon because of the great fishing," Mendoza said.

Norma Amaya, who runs a tackle shop with her husband, insists there is plenty of good fishing in U.S. waters. She points to a photo taken in December of a woman holding a 13.2-pound bass and smiling broadly.

Amaya said her husband's guide service had had a couple cancellations since the pirate warning, but they are still booked solid for next year's peak season, which runs from December to March.

They've stopped selling Mexican fishing licenses because no one is fishing over there now. Robert Amaya stopped taking clients into Mexican waters back in March, when violence was peaking in Mexico.

"It is dangerous over there (in northern Mexico), I wouldn't advise anyone to cross," she said.

Norma Amaya said the reports of pirates "have been blown out of proportion. It's probably just some hoodlums. I don't think the cartels want the exposure."

As he helped launch his cousin's bass boat from Falcon Lake State Park, Ronnie Guerra said he hadn't heard much about the pirates. But he knew enough to stay on his side of the lake.

"We already know what's going on on the other side," he said. "It's been going on for a long time."

[R/Tdrvr]

I discussed this with a game warden buddy of mine today...they indeed are heavily armed from the reports he's gone over but no one has been able to 100% confirm they are cartel. The boats used so far just crawl compared to the average bass rig. It's a good thing the word is getting out cuz stubborn bass fisherman will continue to go into mexican waters and they should be able to high-tail it out in plenty of time unless they get caught back in a cove or break down God forbid.

The problem is the occaisional party family barge that isn't paying attention or still considers this planet a disney fantasy.

Again, the friggin lake is huge & larger than many counties in the U.S....there are big concrete markers that run the length showing the 'general' idea of the border. There simply is no need to go across and ask for trouble. Perfectly safe and tons of room to play on our side of the street.


I agree. If fishermen or families keep going over to the Mexican side after this stuff has been reported, then....well, let's just say you can't fix stupid.

Now if these pirates start coming over to our side of the lake, they should get lit up plain and simple.

[CarlosDJackal]

How about some shooters on the shoreline armed with .50 rifles? :mad:

[warpigM-4]

Sounds like some of the issues are mainly on the Mex side of the lake. I'd rather shoot it out with the Mex Feds than spend time in a Mexican prison for gun possession. Actually I'd rather just drink beer on the dock and get fish and chips at a good bar.

Aren't the Mexicans the ones who say the border doesn't matter? :rolleyes:
Survey Say "BING!" Good answer :p

[The_War_Wagon]

Sounds like the local bass boats need a hood ornament... :mad:

http://steelnavy.com/images/sub/sub8.jpg

[Artos]

...my Dad is in san antonio looking for a new bass boat:D


http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7033818.html

Agents feared Mexican drug cartel attack on border dam

An alleged plot by a Mexican drug cartel to blow up a dam along the Texas border — and unleash billions of gallons of water into a region with millions of civilians — sent American police, federal agents and disaster officials secretly scrambling last month to thwart such an attack, authorities confirmed Wednesday.

Whether or not the cartel, which is known to have stolen bulk quantities of gunpowder and dynamite, could have taken down the 5-mile-long Falcon Dam may never be known since the attack never came to pass.

It may have been derailed by a stepped-up presence by the Mexican military, which was acting in part on intelligence from the U.S. government, sources said.

The warning, which swung officials into action, was based on what the federal government contends were “serious and reliable sources” and prompted the Department of Homeland Security to sound the alarm to first responders along the South Texas-Mexico border.

Mexico's Zeta cartel was planning to destroy the dam not to terrorize civilians, but to get back at its rival and former ally, the Gulf cartel, which controls smuggling routes from the reservoir to the Gulf of Mexico, said Zapata County Sheriff Sigifredo Gonzalez, head of the Southwest Border Sheriff's Coalition, as did others familiar with the alleged plot.

But in the process, massive amounts of agricultural land would stand to be flooded as well as significant parts of a region where about 4 million people live along both sides of the U.S.-Mexico border.

The dam along the lower Rio Grande was finished in 1954 as part of a joint U.S.-Mexico project to collect water for flood control, hydroelectric power and water for drinking and agriculture.

Gonzalez's agency was among many that responded, as did the U.S. Border Patrol, the Texas Department of Public Safety and even game wardens, who put more boats on the water.

Citing security concerns, neither Homeland Security nor DPS commented.

“We trust that DPS and their federal and local law enforcement partners are constantly collecting intelligence and monitoring all threats to Texas and taking the appropriate action to protect our citizens from those who would do us harm,” said Gov. Rick Perry's deputy press secretary Katherine Cesinger.

Varying credibility
Law enforcement officials huddled at the dam, near Rio Grande City, to discuss the threat and how to stifle it, said an officer who attended the meeting.

Officers interviewed by the Chronicle gave the warning varying degrees of credibility. They noted that among the Zetas ranks are Mexican military defectors who were trained in special forces tactics, including demolition.

Special cameras were set up along the dam, which has six 50-foot-tall steel gates, and lawmen hid in brush.

A Mexican military spokesman, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said he had not heard of any threat to the Falcon Dam and expressed doubt that the Zetas would try such an attack.

“This isn't the way these groups operate, they have never attacked installations like that,” he said.

Rick Pauza, a spokesman for Customs and Border Protection, in Laredo, said the port of entry at the dam had been at a heightened alert due to violence in Mexico.

Residents warned?
The attack may have been thwarted in Mexico. It raises the fear of what the powerful cartels could do.

“It would have been a hell of a disaster,” said Gene Falcon, director of emergency preparedness for Starr County, site of the dam. “There was plenty of concern.”

With handbills and bullhorns, members of the Zeta cartel are said to have warned the civilian population on the Mexican side of the river near the dam to get out of the area, according to residents and intelligence information from law enforcement officials.

A border law enforcement official told the Chronicle the warnings originated in part by the seizure of small amounts of dynamite near the dam, and the discovery of a copy of the alert on the Mexican side of the border.

Capt. Francisco Garcia, of the Roma (Texas) Police Department, said there was no way to know what the traffickers were capable of doing, but bringing down the dam would require nearly a tractor-trailer full of dynamite.

“As far as blowing it up — making it fall apart completely — it would have to be something like 9/11,” he said. “By the time they'd start to do something, there will be so much law enforcement there it'd be ridiculous.”

[ForTehNguyen]

blowing up a dam? I would consider that an act of war. I don't care if its primary target was a rival cartel.

[DaBears_85]

blowing up a dam? I would consider that an act of war. I don't care if its primary target was a rival cartel.

God forbid that would have ever actually happened, but if it had it would definately have been the wake-up call that "certain people" in our country need to realize this whole Mexico situation is a very serious deal, as unfortunate as that is.

It's not just about stopping some illegal from crossing the border looking for work, it's about stopping these terrorists from fullfilling whatever retarded agenda they have on our side of the border. I hate to say it but something like this is enevitably going to happen due to lax border control and the "reactive" society in which we live. I say we just level the entire country. We're going to have to do it eventually anyway. Just my $.02...

[Bobert0989]

http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm251/DaddyBS/BassCatGunship.jpg

How's this for protection? It does prohibit some of your movement on the casting deck, but it is available in an offset mount from the rear seat-post as well. Whichever fits your style best!

[Bobert0989]

http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm251/DaddyBS/BassCatGunship.jpg

How's this for protection? It does prohibit some of your movement on the casting deck, but it is available in an offset mount from the rear seat-post as well. Whichever fits your style best!

BTW... Just kidding, that's not really my Dad's boat. He is running a 20' Cobra w/ 225 EFI (uses the offset mount)