A federal judge sentenced Sergio Enrique Ruiz Tlapanco, alias “El Tlapa” or “Z-44”, identified by authorities as one of the founders of the criminal group Los Zetas, to 29 years and nine months in prison, after finding him criminally responsible for organized crime crimes.
The sentence was obtained by the Attorney General's Office (FGR), which reported that it presented sufficient evidence to prove the criminal responsibility of the former member of the criminal organization.
According to the FGR, Ruiz Tlapanco was arrested in 2009 in the state of Puebla and, since then, faced criminal proceedings for his alleged participation in the structure of Los Zetas, a criminal organization that emerged as the armed wing of the Gulf Cartel and later operated independently.
Federal investigations identify “El Tlapa” as one of the first members of the organization, originally made up of former military personnel who deserted from the Armed Forces and who were recruited to provide protection to the then leader of the Gulf Cartel, Osiel Cárdenas Guillén.
According to media such as the weekly Proceso, at the time he was identified as the main generator of violence in Tabasco and responsible for the attack on March 6, 2007 against Major General Francisco Fernández Solís, then Secretary of Public Security of the entity.
The judicial resolution represents one of the most relevant cases against former members of the founding leadership of Los Zetas, a group identified for years by Mexican and US authorities as responsible for multiple crimes related to drug trafficking, kidnapping, extortion and homicides.
With this sentence, the FGR highlighted that it continues actions to bring to justice members of criminal organizations linked to high-impact crimes.
