Published January 13, 2015
A Mexican federal police commander whose top deputies were gunned down last weekend was arrested in California for investigation of drug trafficking, authorities said Friday.
Carlos Alberto Cedano Filippini, 34, was arrested Wednesday night in suburban West Covina along with his wife, Julissa Lopez, for investigation of conspiracy to distribute narcotics, said Sarah Pullen, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration.
They were arrested by a task force that included members of the DEA and Los Angeles Police Department, Pullen said.
Filippini was not targeted by the task force and the DEA "didn't expect to get who we got," she said.
She did not have other details of the arrest.
Filippini remained jailed Friday and could not be reached for comment. It could not immediately be determined whether his wife was still in custody.
No charges had been filed against the pair by Friday morning, Los Angeles County district attorney's spokeswoman Jane Robison said.
Filippini was the top agent in Mexicali for the Agencia Federal de Investigacion, known as AFI. His two top agents were shot to death in that Baja California capital Saturday night, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported Friday. No arrests have been made in those killings.
Mexico's police have long been accused of corruption and conspiracy with drug cartels and many have been fired from local, state and federal agencies in a current anti-drug crackdown. Mexico's President Felipe Calderon also has deployed 25,000 soldiers across the country to wrest back territory from drug gangs, which have killed many troops and police officers.
More than 4,000 people have been killed in turf wars, assassinations and shootouts since December 2006, when Calderon took office.
https://www.foxnews.com/story/dea-mexican-federal-police-commander-arrested-on-california-drug-charges