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| All Photos Courtesy of Regeneración Radio |
By: Regeneración Radio / Tejemedios
Gabriel Caballero Farías, known as “El Plátano”, was born and raised in Caleta de Campos, and underwent emergency surgery on December 3, 2013 because of a condition on his cervical spine. The operation went smoothly and the doctor, as is in other cases, prescribed him a year of rest. On January 14, 2014, a little more than 30 days after the operation, “El Plátano” joined the autodefensas of Aquila. “I went to Aquila because they had risen up in arms, I became an autodefensa because of the violence that my town was suffering through, people couldn’t even go outside, the Templarios were just doing stupid things in the town; they had threatened us all.” Such was the level of extortion for people living in Caleta de Campos; that is why Gabriel opted for the safety of his family and left his hometown to move to the city of Colima for three long years. On his exile, he left his life as a rancher, his ranch, and orchards of mango and papaya. “Here everyone knows my from when I was a little kid, they know that I’m a hardworking person and know that I’ve never been around thugs”.
Gabriel makes this explanation because recently Estanislao Beltrán "Papa Pitufo" (Papa Smurf), leader of some of the autodefensasof Tepalcatepec, has spoken criticism to the press about “El Plátano” and the autodefensas of Caleta de Campos being pseudoautodefensas, this occurred after the shootout that occurred on Sunday August 27 in the town of Chiquiapan.
On the morning of February 13, 2014, “El Plátano” took his AK-47 and rode on a truck along with his autodefensa comrades; the community of Ostula, 30 minutes from Aquila, had just been liberated barely three days ago by a group of locals who had also been forced to migrate from the area and now returned as autodefensas. The autodefensas, led by Semeí Verdía, had called on all of the communities and landholders of the area for a meeting to address the issue of the movement. The meeting was a high calling and was attended by many of the coastal Nahua communities from the municipality of Aquila. The decision was emphatic; full support for the autodefensas and authorization to displace along Highway 200, which connects Lázaro Cárdenas to Manzanillo, installing checkpoints in order to expel the Caballeros Templarios in the area.
Some 60 trucks, filled with autodefensas from the municipalities of Aquila, Cohayuana, Chinicuila and Coalcomán took off to clean the coast. Within two weeks, they had already fulfilled their mission. They checked village by village, house by house, hill by hill, but found no one; the Templarios had already escaped. While this advancement was occurring, checkpoints were placed along the road: El Duin, Cachán, Tizupan, Huahua and finally, on February 24, Caleta de Campo, establishing the autodefensa border with territory not yet liberated, about 70 kilometers from the port of Lázaro Cárdenas.
Gabriel had acquired sufficient experience during the operations of the coast and as well as being a native of Caleta; he was elected as the coordinator of the barricade. “When we arrived, people felt kind of scared, but then they saw that I liberated Caleta and said; oh, well he’s ‘El Plátano’. By the time we arrived, we gathered about 400 people, then we made the assembly and the people began to rise up in arms, they saw that we were people from Caleta, all of the people support us”.
The barricade of Caleta de Campo can’t survive without the support of the people. The kitchen we have that feeds the volunteers is supplied by donations from the community, “without them, without the support of the people, we wouldn’t exist,” says “El Plátano”. In its borderline condition, the roadblock hasn’t been without its tense moments. “Who is helping here is the Federal Police; they arrived and set up within a few days. Who we distrust is the Mexican Navy; they have come here repeatedly and tried to disarm us, if we didn’t ring the bells, they would disarm us. We have the people on our side; they came out and defended us in front of the Navy. They couldn’t mess with us”.
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| Courtesy of Tejemedios |
Coastal Communities Report Links between “Papa Smurf” And the Caballeros Templarios
This is how things remained until Sunday April 27. It had been several weeks that they had reports about a checkpoint being set up in the town of Chuquiapan claiming to beautodefensas; they had never had contact with them or with any other autodefensas of the coast, which are coordinated by Semeí Verdía. “They were wearing facemasks all the time, and the same people from there told us that they were being paid by organized crime. We saw time passing and nothing was being done about it. We talked with Semeí and Dr. Mireles to be given permission to advance”. The permission finally arrived and on Sunday “El Plátano” confirmed with Velerio, an official in charge of the Federal Police who entered the zone along with the autodefensas and who also set up with the autodefensas at the checkpoint. “The Federal Police has been with us since the beginning, we have coordinated with them all this time; so I talked with Valerio and he confirmed with me that his superiors had given them permission to advance”.
At 3:30 in the afternoon, more than 150 autodefensasfrom Aquila got together and began the expected advancement. The operation took Highway 200 towards Lázaro Cárdenas led by the autodefensas of Caleta de Campos. At the checkpoint, the Federal Police stayed to guard the area. A few minutes later after the group left towards Chuquiapan, “Papa Smurf” appeared in Caleta, who had come down by Arteaga, through a trail in the mountains accompanied by the State Police in a convoy of 20 trucks. “We come for ‘El Plátano’”.
“The Federal Police defended me because they know me; we’ve been working together for three months. ‘Papa Smurf’ was investigating me in order to catch me because he’s being paid by the Templarios”, Gabriel said irritably. For a moment, the situation could’ve become dangerous, but finally the Federal Police and the convoy of Tepalcatepec gave in to the argument of the Federal Police and everyone took off towards Chuquiapan, where a few moments ago a shootout had unleashed. It was “El Plátano” and his comrades who had finally made contact with the fake checkpoint.
Upon the arrival of the coastal autodefensas to Chuquiapan, they were ambushed; taking fire from the hills and the roadblock. After the confrontation, which lasted about 15 minutes, they repelled the attack and killed four gunmen. “When we arrived, we were greeted with gunfire, we got out of our trucks and defended ourselves, but they looked like they didn’t know how to use their weapons well. Soon after, a gunman died from the hills and the three from the checkpoint also fell”. After the shootout and while theautodefensastended to their wounded, Estanislao Beltrán, the State Police, and the Federal Police arrived. “I didn’t see who it was, but the weapons of the Templarios weren’t there anymore. How strange is that right? I think it was Papa Smurf who made them disappear, that’s why in the photos released to the press the dead gunmen are unarmed.”
An hour later, Semeí Verdía, and José Manuel Mireles arrived at the scene. They confirmed that the checkpoint was associated with the Templarios. During the operation 18 people who remained at the checkpoint, were also able to be detained. When questioned, they explained that a woman from the town of La Mira had promised them between $1,000-$1,200 pesos for “supporting” the people at the checkpoint. “Many of us said yes because we were desperate, because of the lack of work, we need the money, that’s how they convinced us to stay”, one of them said. Another of the detainees, a youth who was barely 20 years old, admitted to have been working for the Caballeros Templarios as a “hawk”, “I reported on the movement of the feds here”; he was unaware of addresses of people in charge or who paid him. After the urging from the autodefensas, they reported about someone who goes by “Cebollo” as the person who explained to them about the “checkpoint”. Another detainee was identified by the autodefensas of Huahua as a man who tortured and killed innocent people.
“We have no doubt that “Papa Smurf” is with the Templarios and the Mexican Navy. We found a truck from them with a document that was signed by “Papa Smurf”, where along with the people from this checkpoint, they asked the Mexican Navy for help to fuck us up”. That’s why the Mexican Navy has bothered us so much, all this time they have been with them”. The document that “El Plátano” is talking about, shows very clearly the signature of Estanislao Beltrán, who serves as “representative of the communities of the municipality of Lázaro Cárdenas”. In the document, they request support and “permanent” presence in the area, autodefensaswho moments before, had confessed to being paid by organized crime.
“How is it possible that the Mexican Navy will provide support to them while seeing that the Federal Police was with us? Did the government representatives ever gather to see who was who? Everyone here knows that we are for the good of the people”. Gabriel vigorously questions. The detainees were handed over to the Attorney General of Michoacán and transferred to Lázaro Cárdenas.
After the police and the autodefensas of “Papa Smurf” left, the autodefensas went to the neighboring town of Chucutitán where different operations were performed, and they delivered material in order for the residents of the town to arm themselves. During the tour of the orchards and the river banks in Chucutitán, vehicles, remains of a camp, and a narco-laboratory were found. While the checkpoint of the pseudo autodefensasexisted, they never performed patrols in the surrounding communities in order to chase out the Templarios from there.
On Thursday, April 30, they began to perform an operation in the town of Chucutitán, about 60 kilometers from Lázaro Cárdenas. The operation consisted of a house that neighbors identified as a gathering house for the Caballeros Templarios. Upon arrival, they found no one, but after an intense search, they found assault weapons and clothes hidden under the ground. Among the items, shirts alluding to the Caballeros Templarios, and official uniforms of the Mexican Navy and Municipal Police were found.
“The autodefensas from the coast are one of the cleanest autodefensas in Michoacán. Over in Tierra Caliente, they have their chaos and they went to come here fuck us up. They’re going after the mines, that’s what really matters to them, they are being paid by the Templarios and the Templarios are giving them protection, the mafia here is very dangerous and this is not yet over”. “El Plátano” fears for the worst because along with the accusations that the press has charged him with, the Federal Police no longer stations itself at the checkpoint; after the shootout they left and haven’t returned. “They know about the things that I’ve discovered, you can’t imagine, that’s why they want to smear me because if I disappear, fear will come back to the people. That’s why I’m telling you all of this; I’m worried that this may be the last time we talk”.
