An infamous cartel leader and hitman who would decapitate his enemies has gone missing from a US prison where he was serving a 49-year sentence.
Edgar Valdez-Villareal, who had the sinister nickname La Barbie, has been removed from the federal Bureau of Prisons website and is listed as “not in BOP custody”.
The 49-year-old led Los Negros group which carried out killings for the Beltran Leyva cartel, one of Mexico's fearsome criminal gangs.
He was captured following a firefight with Mexican police in Mexico City in 2010 and was indicted in the US that year, finally being extradited five years later, reports New York Post.
He was found guilty of drug trafficking and money laundering, and sentenced to 49-years in prison. His release date is set to be July 27, 2056.
The Mexican President was left asking about Valdez-Villareal's current whereabouts.
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador said in a press conference: “It’s very strange what is going on in the United States with Mr Villareal, who is no longer registered among those in custody and we want to know where he is.
“There is no reason for him to leave prison because he was condemned to many years, unless there was some kind of an agreement.”
Some believe he may have made a deal with US authorities.
Robert Almonte, a security consultant and former deputy chief of the Texas Police Department in El Paso, said: “He could be providing information on high-ranking cartel members, but even if this were the case I can’t see him being released from custody.
“He’s very dangerous. He’s killed people and he’s extremely violent and still has these connections to the cartels.”
A spokesperson for the Bureau of Prisons refused to say why Valdez-Villareal was no longer in federal custody, but said inmates can be temporarily removed if they are undergoing court hearings, medical treatments or unspecified “other reasons.”
“We do not provide specific information on the status of inmates who are not in the custody of the BOP for safety, security or privacy reasons,” the spokesman said.
Valdez-Villareal grew up in Laredo, Texas, and at the time of his capture was the only American citizen to have ever risen that high in the ranks of Mexico’s cartels.
He was given the nickname 'La Barbie' by a high school football coach because of his blue eyes and light complexion.
As a leader of Los negros, he tortured his victims often video taping it.
For years he controlled key drug routes into the US moving as much as two tonnes a month.
