A DEA agent spoke of undercover drug deals, informants and stash houses at a federal detention hearing for suspects arrested in the Chuco Tango gang raids in El Paso.
The FBI and the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration arrested 22 reputed members of the Chuco Tango prison gang, associates and accused drug dealers on the morning of Aug. 29 in a series of raids in the El Paso area. Some suspects were already jailed on other charges.
On Sept. 5, a courtroom at the federal courthouse was crowded with family members, U.S. Marshals, federal agents and attorneys for more than a dozen defendants — men and women in orange jail jumpsuits sitting handcuffed with their feet shackled.
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One youthful-looking defendant could have passed for a high school freshman. Others appeared more menacing with their faces covered in tattoos. The suspects face a variety of federal drug-related charges.