"Mexico reports arrest of major drug suspect."

Here is an excerpt from E. Eduardo Castillo's article in the Associated Press:

"Mexico has detained one of its most wanted drug suspects, Vicente Carrillo Leyva, who allegedly was the second in command of the powerful Juarez cartel, the federal Attorney General's Office said Thursday. Federal police said Carrillo Leyva, 32, was caught while he was exercising in a park in a posh Mexico City neighborhood early Wednesday. Carrillo Leyva is the son of drug kingpin Amado Carrillo Fuentes, who was one of Mexico's most important drug traffickers before he died during plastic surgery to change his appearance in 1997. After his death, Amado's brother Vicente took over the cartel and Amado's son, Vicente Carrillo Leyva became second-in-command, the Attorney General's Office said." Link to Full Article

Analysis: One things I've noticed in recent months is the slight exaggeration of the Mexican government's claims regarding arrests of cartel "kingpins" or "bosses," so I was a little skeptical when I saw this headline. Often, it turns out the arrest was of a plaza boss or gatekeeper, which is usually a lieutenant or "middle manager" which doesn't even rate placement on a leadership org chart. The arrest of Carrillo Leyva, however, IS a big deal, and the significance of the arrest is no exaggeration. He was second-in-command to Vicente Carrillo Fuentes, whose whereabouts remain unknown, and the question of who will replace Carrillo Leyva is a good one. Carrillo Fuentes' brother Rodolfo and his former partners have either been killed, arrested, or defected to other organizations in the last five years. The Juarez cartel is still powerful - make no mistake about that. However, in the meantime, it will be interesting to see if Carrillo Fuentes makes any short-term agreements with other cartels while he gets this power vacuum sorted out.