Valladolid, Yucatán — Mexican federal security secretary Omar García Harfuch announced the arrest of a suspected cartel leader who operated from Quintana Roo and was captured Thursday in the Yucatán city of Valladolid.
Speaking at the morning press conference in Cuernavaca, Morelos, García Harfuch identified the suspect as Héctor Manuel “N,” alias “El Kado” or “Ka2ador.” He said the arrest was the result of a joint operation involving the Mexican Navy, the Defense Department, the Public Security Department, and the Federal Prosecutor’s Office, with intelligence shared by U.S. security agencies.
“This person operated from Quintana Roo, and during one of his movements he was located in Valladolid, where he was arrested and handed over to the authorities,” García Harfuch said.
Federal officials identify Héctor Manuel as one of the main regional operators for the Arellano Félix cartel. He is also accused of leading a group dedicated to extortion in Baja California, and authorities link him to drug trafficking, theft of narcotics, and territorial control in Tijuana and Ensenada.
Unofficially, he is also being investigated for homicide and is believed to be a successor to Pablo Edwin Huerta Nuño, alias “El Flaquito.”
The Organized Crime Prosecutor’s Office will determine his legal status.
