Santiago Meza Lopez, Mexico Drug Suspect Says He Dissolved 300 Bodies

Santiago Meza, known as El Pozolero or The Stew Maker, a reference to the traditional Mexican stew called pozole, and an apt nickname in regards to his method of disposing of human remains, told journalists he did away with bodies in industrial drums on the outskirts of the violent Mexican city of Tijuana. He worked for Teodoro "El Teo" García Simental, the man trying to seize control of the Tijuana drug cartel from Fernando Sánchez. Meza said that the victims either betrayed Garcia or he owed him something. When he received the bodies after they were already dead, he was paid $600 a week for disposal of corpses and has been disposing of bodies for 9 years. Meza said that only disposed of men, never women.

More than 700 people died in Tijuana last year as rival gangs battled for control of the city's lucrative drug trade. Many others are missing and have been believed to be dead after being abducted.

The suspect, Santiago Meza, who was paraded before journalists by the army, said he was paid by a breakaway faction of the Arellano Felix cartel to dispose of slain rivals with caustic soda, a highly corrosive substance.

"They brought me the bodies and I just got rid of them," Meza said at a construction site, "I didn't feel anything." The bodies took 24 hours to dissolve but left some remains that were dumped in a nearby pit.

A high-ranking army officer told Reuters he believed Meza, was telling the truth. Police have previously recovered human remains burned with acid in and around the city.

Relatives of 100 missing people came forward over that weekend saying that they wanted to show photos of their loved ones to Meza in the hope he could reveal their fate. Rommel Moreno, the state's Attorney General, said that Meza would be shown the photos to see if he recognized anyone among his victims. He said that the authorities were considering allowing the victims' families to meet him. Meza apologized to all the relatives of his victims, authorities said. "May they forgive me," he said, surrounded by heavily armed soldiers. Police were searching the shack for human remains and will ask US authorities for DNA-testing equipment.

The spiraling violence of Mexico's drug war has cast a pall over the country and presents a huge challenge to President Felipe Calderón, who has deployed thousands of troops to crush the cartels.

The drug war claimed 5,700 lives across Mexico last year, more than double the number of victims in 2007.

There were 5,400 Drug-related killings in Mexico last year, more than double the toll in 2007.

There are 3 main groups are fighting over the lucrative trade: the Tijuana cartel, led by the Arellano Félix family, the Gulf cartel, and the Sinaloa cartel.

There are 7 million cocaine users in North America. 45% of the world cocaine trade goes to North America. 90% of all cocaine entering North America is brought through Mexico.

In December of 2006, President Calderón called in the army to tackle cartels, leading to a rise in violence.

Since the start of this year, 346 people have died or disappeared in drugs-related violence, and Tijuana is one of the worst affected areas.

This is a gruesome chapter in a battle that stands out for tales of torture, brutal killings, and mutilated corpses. One cause of rising violence is a split between García and his former bosses, the Arellano Félix brothers, which ignited a war between two cartels to dominate the drugs trade. The two split in April of last year, after a Tijuana shootout between their followers, left at least 14 people dead. Before Meza was arrested, 22 people were murdered in Chihuahua province.