Alfonso Lam Liu
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Alfonso Lam Liu (born 1969/1970), also known as Gordo Lam ("Fatty Lam"), is a Mexican convicted drug lord and former high-ranking member of the
Gulf Cartel The Gulf Cartel ( , or ''Golfos'') is a criminal syndicate, Drug cartel, drug trafficking organization, and U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, which is perhaps one of the oldest organized crime groups in Mexico. It is currently bas ...
, a criminal group based in
Tamaulipas Tamaulipas, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Tamaulipas, is a state in Mexico; one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, comprise the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It is divided into 43 municipalities. It is located in nor ...
, Mexico. Lam Liu was part of the cartel during the early 2000s and worked as the regional leader of
Río Bravo The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States and in northern ...
under the directorship of
Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sánchez Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sánchez (born 1 August 1971) is a former Mexican drug lord and top leader of the criminal drug trafficking organization known as the Gulf Cartel. He was among Mexico's most-wanted drug lords, until his arrest in 2012. H ...
and
Osiel Cárdenas Guillén Osiel Cárdenas Guillén (born 18 May 1967) is a former Mexican drug lord and the former top leader of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas. Originally a mechanic in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, he entered the cartel by killing Juan García Abrego's fri ...
. As head of organized crime activities in Río Bravo, Lam Liu was responsible for coordinating international cocaine and marijuana trafficking shipments to the U.S. and of smuggling drug proceeds back into Mexico. During his tenure, Lam Liu worked closely with local government officials, who helped facilitate the Gulf Cartel's operations in exchange for bribery payments. In 2007, Lam Liu was indicted by the
United States District Court for the District of Columbia The United States District Court for the District of Columbia (in case citations, D.D.C.) is a United States district court, federal district court in Washington, D.C. Along with the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii and ...
for international drug trafficking along with other high-ranking members of the Gulf Cartel and its former paramilitary group
Los Zetas Los Zetas (, Spanish for "The Zs") is a Mexican criminal syndicate and designated terrorist organization, known as one of the most dangerous of Mexico's drug cartels. They are known for engaging in brutally violent " shock and awe" tactics suc ...
. In 2009, when returning from a trip to Las Vegas, he was arrested by agents of the
Drug Enforcement Administration The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating illicit Illegal drug trade, drug trafficking a ...
(DEA). He was convicted and imprisoned at the Federal Correctional Institution in
Big Spring, Texas Big Spring is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Texas, Howard County, Texas, United States, at the crossroads of U.S. Route 87 in Texas, U.S. Highway 87 and Interstate 20 in Texas, Interstate 20. The population was 26,144 at the ...
. In 2017, the
Office of the Pardon Attorney The Office of the Pardon Attorney (OPA), part of the United States Department of Justice, assists the president of the United States in his exercise of executive clemency as authorized by Article II, Section 2, of the US Constitution. The office ...
announced that Lam Liu's
commutation Commute, commutation or commutative may refer to: * Commuting, the process of travelling between a place of residence and a place of work Mathematics * Commutative property, a property of a mathematical operation whose result is insensitive to th ...
request was denied. His expected release date is 24 February 2026.


Early life

Alfonso Lam Liu, who is known by his nickname Gordo Lam ("Fatty Lam"), was born in Torreón, Coahuila, Mexico. Since he was a child, Lam Liu has had a tendency for
obesity Obesity is a medical condition, considered by multiple organizations to be a disease, in which excess Adipose tissue, body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative effects on health. People are classifi ...
and was thus nicknamed for it. He was tall and physically stocky. Lam Liu's father was of Lebanese descent and his mother was of
Chinese descent Overseas Chinese people are people of Chinese origin who reside outside Greater China (mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan). As of 2011, there were over 40.3 million overseas Chinese. As of 2023, there were 10.5 million people livin ...
. His family worked in the cotton industry and owned several restaurants in the area. They were part of a group of wealthy Lebanese Mexicans based in
Coahuila Coahuila, formally Coahuila de Zaragoza, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Coahuila de Zaragoza, is one of the 31 states of Mexico. The largest city and State Capital is the city of Saltillo; the second largest is Torreón and the thi ...
. Lam Liu was enrolled in the top schools of the area; he attended grade school at the Instituto Francés de la Laguna in neighboring municipality of
Gómez Palacio, Durango Gómez Palacio is a city and its surrounding municipality in northeastern Durango, Mexico, adjacent to the border of the state of Coahuila. The city is named in honor of former Durango governor, Francisco Gómez Palacio y Bravo. As of 2010, ...
. For high school, he attended
Carlos Pereyra School Carlos Pereyra School (''Escuela Carlos Pereyra'') is a private Catholic basic education institution run by the Society of Jesus in Comarca Lagunera, La Laguna region of Torreon, Coahuila, Mexico. It was founded by the Jesuits in 1942 and offers ...
, a
Society of Jesus The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rome. It was founded in 1540 ...
school in Torreón. Upon graduation, he attended the
Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education (ITESM; ), also known as Technological Institute of Monterrey () or just Tec, is aresearch university based in Monterrey, Mexico, which has grown to include 35 campuses located across 25 cit ...
in Torreón to study business administration but he did not finish his studies.


Career

According to security forces, Lam Liu joined organized crime through Jaime Guerrero González, the father-in-law of the former Coahuila Governor
Humberto Moreira Humberto Moreira Valdés (born 28 July 1966) is a Mexican politician who served as President of the Institutional Revolutionary Party. He was Governor of the State of Coahuila from 2005 to 2011. Moreira was included in a list of the "10 most c ...
. Guerrero worked closely with
Osiel Cárdenas Guillén Osiel Cárdenas Guillén (born 18 May 1967) is a former Mexican drug lord and the former top leader of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas. Originally a mechanic in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, he entered the cartel by killing Juan García Abrego's fri ...
, the leader of the
Gulf Cartel The Gulf Cartel ( , or ''Golfos'') is a criminal syndicate, Drug cartel, drug trafficking organization, and U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, which is perhaps one of the oldest organized crime groups in Mexico. It is currently bas ...
, organizing events in
Piedras Negras Piedras Negras may refer to: * Piedras Negras, Coahuila, a city in the state of Coahuila, Mexico ** Piedras Negras Municipality, a municipality in Mexico, with the center in the eponymous city * Piedras Negras (Maya site) Piedras Negras is the ...
for him. Lam Liu later met Cárdenas Guillén and joined the Gulf Cartel. The police stated that Lam Liu had an inclination for violence but preferred to keep a low profile. According to the U.S.
Drug Enforcement Administration The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating illicit Illegal drug trade, drug trafficking a ...
(DEA), Lam Liu coordinated attacks against Mexican government officials who worked against the interests of the Gulf Cartel by using U.S.-born assassins as foot soldiers. Lam Liu was a high-ranking member of the Gulf Cartel faction headed by the kingpin
Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sánchez Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sánchez (born 1 August 1971) is a former Mexican drug lord and top leader of the criminal drug trafficking organization known as the Gulf Cartel. He was among Mexico's most-wanted drug lords, until his arrest in 2012. H ...
; his colleagues were the siblings Gregorio and
Héctor Manuel Sauceda Gamboa Héctor Manuel Sauceda Gamboa (died 17 February 2009), commonly referred to by his alias El Karis, was a Mexican suspected drug trafficker and high-ranking leader of the Gulf Cartel, a drug trafficking organization based in Tamaulipas. He was the ...
,
Zeferino Peña Cuéllar Zeferino Peña Cuéllar, also known as Don Zefe, is a suspected Mexican drug lord and high-ranking member of the Gulf Cartel, a criminal group based in Tamaulipas, Mexico. He was part of the cartel during the 1990s and was a trusted enforcer ...
("Don Zefe"), and
Carlos Landín Martínez Carlos Landín Martínez (born – 9 December 2021), also known as El Puma, was a Mexican former police chief and convicted drug lord. He was a high-ranking member of the Gulf Cartel, a criminal group based in Tamaulipas, Mexico, and worked as ...
("El Puma"). Lam Liu was the regional leader of the Gulf Cartel in
Río Bravo, Tamaulipas Río Bravo, formally Ciudad Río Bravo, is a city on the northern border of the state of Tamaulipas in northeastern Mexico. It is the municipal seat of Río Bravo Municipality. Geography The city lies in the Rio Grande Valley on the south of t ...
. He was responsible for international drug trafficking activities between Tamaulipas and the U.S. Lam Liu reportedly had ties with several local politicians who helped the Gulf Cartel operate freely in the area in exchange for bribery payments. From 2002 to 2004, Lam Liu reportedly had a partnership with the
Río Bravo The Rio Grande ( or ) in the United States or the Río Bravo (del Norte) in Mexico (), also known as Tó Ba'áadi in Navajo, is one of the principal rivers (along with the Colorado River) in the Southwestern United States and in northern ...
mayor
Juan Antonio Guajardo Anzaldúa Juan Antonio Guajardo Anzaldúa (30 November 1958 – 29 November 2007) was a Mexican politician. Through his life he represented various political parties, although he was never affiliated with one. He served as Deputy of the 57th and 59th Le ...
, who became the first mayor of the city to work closely with organized crime groups. Through his cousin Rolando Aguilar Anzaldúa, the mayor received the payments from the Gulf Cartel and intimidated rival politicians. The Gulf Cartel's paramilitary group
Los Zetas Los Zetas (, Spanish for "The Zs") is a Mexican criminal syndicate and designated terrorist organization, known as one of the most dangerous of Mexico's drug cartels. They are known for engaging in brutally violent " shock and awe" tactics suc ...
was not part of the agreement with the local government because they refused to pay the fee imposed by government officials, resulting in tensions between Lam Liu, Los Zetas leader
Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano (25 December 1974 – 7 October 2012), commonly referred to by his aliases Z-3 and El Lazca, was a Mexican drug lord and the leader of Los Zetas drug cartel. He was one of the most-wanted Mexican drug lords. Lazcano j ...
, and Guajardo Anzaldúa. When Guajardo Anzaldúa's mayoralty ended, he ran for congress and continued to receive payments from Lam Liu. He ran for mayor again in 2007 but lost the election. Upon his defeat, he asked the federal government to increase the Mexican Army's presence in Río Bravo, which elevated tensions in organized crime circles. In November 2007, Guajardo Anzaldúa was murdered by gunmen. Days prior to his murder, Guajardo Anzaldúa told reporters the Gulf Cartel financed political campaigns; he showed pictures of organized crime members with Tamaulipas state officials. According to the Deputy Attorney General's Office for Special Investigation into Organized Crime (SIEDO), along with other cartel members, Lam Liu may have been responsible for organizing the murder of Guajardo Anzaldúa. Investigators also believe Lazcano Lazcano may have ordered the attack. Guajardo Anzaldúa also had disagreements with politician Miguel Ángel Almaraz Maldonado, who headed an illegal
Pemex Pemex (a portmanteau of Petróleos Mexicanos, which translates to ''Mexican Petroleum'' in English; ) is the Mexico, Mexican State ownership, state-owned Petroleum industry, petroleum corporation managed and operated by the government of Mexico, ...
oil theft ring in Tamaulipas with Lam Liu and the cartel. In addition to Guajardo Anzaldúa, Lam Liu was close to Juan de Dios Cavazos Cárdenas, who also served as the Río Bravo mayor; they were often seen together at public boxing events. According to investigators, Cavazos Cárdenas appointed several family members of Los Zetas to government posts. The partnership between Lam Liu and Cavazos Cárdenas extended into their personal lives; Cavazos Cárdenas' son-in-law's sister was married to Lam Liu (her surnames were Canales Melhem). Lam Liu was an investor in their family's businesses, which included a transportation company known as Transportes Trancasa. In politics, Lam Liu supported his cousin Edgardo Melhem Salinas, who was head of the
Secretariat of Social Development The Secretariat of Welfare (Spanish Language, Spanish: ''Secretaría de Bienestar'') is the Ministry (government department), government department in charge of social development efforts in Mexico. The Secretary of Welfare is a member of the Mex ...
(SEDESOL) agency in Tamaulipas.


Criminal charges

On 15 November 2007, Lam Liu was indicted by the
United States District Court for the District of Columbia The United States District Court for the District of Columbia (in case citations, D.D.C.) is a United States district court, federal district court in Washington, D.C. Along with the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii and ...
(D.D.C.) along with several other members of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas for his involvement in drug trafficking. The indictment was initially sealed in court by U.S. officials and was opened in court on 2 September 2008. As a result of the offenses, Lam Liu was ordered to forfeit the drug profits made from this scheme. Lam Liu was charged again in a superseding indictment by the D.D.C. on 15 May 2009 and was identified as the regional leader of the Gulf Cartel in Río Bravo. According to this indictment, in or around 2006, Lam Liu supervised cocaine and marijuana smuggling activities from Mexico, Guatemala, Panama, Colombia, and elsewhere to the U.S. Both incidents included drug charges of importing at least of cocaine and at least of marijuana. U.S. authorities stated that the drugs imported by Lam Liu were smuggled in motor vehicles from Mexico to the U.S. In addition, the second indictment stated that Lam Liu carried out violent attacks against Mexican security forces and rival gangsters that interfered with their operations, and that he used push-to-talk devices and
UHF Ultra high frequency (UHF) is the ITU designation for radio frequencies in the range between 300 megahertz (MHz) and 3 gigahertz (GHz), also known as the decimetre band as the wavelengths range from one meter to one tenth of a meter ...
/ VHF radio communications equipment with coded conversations to coordinate with other smugglers and avoid detection by law enforcement personnel. Lam Liu's record-keeping activities were stored on flashdrives and laptops, and included information on other regional leaders, drug shipments and locations, payrolls to gang members and corrupt government officials, and the cartel's accounts receivable and accounts payable. In addition to the drug charges, Lam Liu was also charged with smuggling currency from the drug profits from the U.S. to Mexico. In the second indictment, U.S. authorities provided more details of Lam Liu's drug trafficking activities; it said he met with Lazcano Lazcano in January 2007 to discuss a cocaine deal. In the agreement, Lazcano gave Lam Liu the drugs and agreed to let him sell it in
Houston, Texas Houston ( ) is the List of cities in Texas by population, most populous city in the U.S. state of Texas and in the Southern United States. Located in Southeast Texas near Galveston Bay and the Gulf of Mexico, it is the county seat, seat of ...
once it reached the U.S., and allowed him to keep half of the profits. Lazcano contacted his associate Daniel Pérez Rojas ("El Cachetes"), who coordinated the delivery to Lam Liu with Víctor Hugo López Valdez. Lazcano's associates confirmed there was surplus cocaine stored in a warehouse in
Valle Hermoso, Tamaulipas Valle Hermoso is the main city in the municipality of Valle Hermoso in the northeastern part of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas. The city serves as the municipal seat of the municipality, which is bordered by the municipalities of Matamoros and ...
and delivered it to Lam Liu. In a wiretapped conversation mentioned in the second indictment, on 9 March 2007, Lam Liu spoke with the organized crime kingpin
Jaime González Durán Jaime González Durán (a.k.a. ''El Hummer'', born 8 October 1971) is a Mexican former drug lord who was one of the 14 original founding members and third-in-command of the criminal organization known as Los Zetas. A former Mexican Army elite s ...
about a shipment of marijuana Lam Liu received from suppliers in Río Bravo. Lam Liu stated that the supplier would not be taxed for moving drugs through his turf because he was a good friend of his and that some of the drugs would be sent to González Durán's turf. The indictment stated that González Durán agreed to Lam Liu's request not to tax his supplier.


Manhunt and arrest

In January 2008, Lam Liu was nearly captured by Mexican authorities following a raid at a home in
Altamira Altamira may refer to: People *Altamira (surname) Places *Cave of Altamira, a cave in Cantabria, Spain famous for its paintings and carving *Altamira, Pará, a city in the Brazilian state of Pará * Altamira, Huila, a town and municipality in C ...
, where a shootout between organized crime members and law enforcement officers broke out. Authorities confiscated several firearms, ammunition, bullet-proof vests and vehicles. The police stated that Lam Liu may have been hiding there prior to the arrival of law enforcement personnel. In a simultaneous operation, authorities also raided a house in
Ciudad Mier Mier (), also known as ''El Paso del Cántaro'', is a city in Mier Municipality in Tamaulipas, located in northern Mexico near the Rio Grande, just south of Falcon Dam. It is northeast of Monterrey on Mexican Federal Highway 2. (26°28'N 99°10 ...
and seized multiple vehicles, ammunition, and drugs linked to Lam Liu. The
Attorney General's Office The Attorney General's Office (AGO) is a ministerial department of the Government of the United Kingdom. It supports the Attorney General and their deputy, the Solicitor General (together, the Law officers of the Crown in England and Wales). It ...
(PGR) found several documents that linked Lam Liu to the Gulf Cartel; he was a suspect in several murders of security forces and politicians in Tamaulipas and in other parts of Mexico. The
Mexican Army The Mexican Army () is the combined Army, land and Air Force, air branch and is the largest part of the Mexican Armed Forces; it is also known as the National Defense Army. The Army is under the authority of the Secretariat of National Defense o ...
extended its manhunt for Lam Liu and people aligned to his faction across multiple cities in Tamaulipas, including Río Bravo,
Reynosa Reynosa () is a border city in the northern part of the state of Tamaulipas, in Mexico which also holds the municipal seat of Reynosa Municipality. The city is located on the southern bank of the Rio Grande in the international Reynosa–McAlle ...
, Miguel Alemán,
Nuevo Laredo Nuevo Laredo () is a city in the Municipality of Nuevo Laredo in the Mexican List of states of Mexico, state of Tamaulipas. The city lies on the banks of the Rio Grande, across from Laredo, Texas, Laredo, United States. The 2010 census popula ...
and Matamoros. Law enforcement officials had information that Lam Liu was hiding in the state. In 2009, the DEA arrested him after returning from a trip to
Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...
. At the moment of his arrest, Lam Liu was accompanied by a woman from Río Bravo. Lam Liu was convicted in a U.S. court and was imprisoned at the Federal Correctional Institution in
Big Spring, Texas Big Spring is a city in and the county seat of Howard County, Texas, Howard County, Texas, United States, at the crossroads of U.S. Route 87 in Texas, U.S. Highway 87 and Interstate 20 in Texas, Interstate 20. The population was 26,144 at the ...
. On 18 January 2017, the
Office of the Pardon Attorney The Office of the Pardon Attorney (OPA), part of the United States Department of Justice, assists the president of the United States in his exercise of executive clemency as authorized by Article II, Section 2, of the US Constitution. The office ...
announced that Lam Liu's request for
commutation Commute, commutation or commutative may refer to: * Commuting, the process of travelling between a place of residence and a place of work Mathematics * Commutative property, a property of a mathematical operation whose result is insensitive to th ...
was denied by
U.S. President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the Federal government of the United States#Executive branch, executive branch of the Federal government of t ...
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...
. Lam Liu's expected release date is 24 February 2026.


See also

*
Mexican Drug War The Mexican drug war is an List of ongoing armed conflicts, ongoing Asymmetric warfare, asymmetric armed conflict between the Federal government of Mexico, Mexican government and various Drug cartel#Mexico, drug trafficking syndicates. When the ...


Footnotes


References


Further reading

*


External links


Indictment Photos
by the U.S.
Drug Enforcement Administration The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) is a Federal law enforcement in the United States, United States federal law enforcement agency under the U.S. Department of Justice tasked with combating illicit Illegal drug trade, drug trafficking a ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lam Liu, Alfonso Gulf Cartel members People from Torreón Mexican people imprisoned abroad Living people Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education alumni Mexican people of Lebanese descent Mexican people of Chinese descent Year of birth uncertain Year of birth missing (living people)