Mario Nunez Meza Arrested In Mexico; Drug Cartel Is Connected To 350 Murders [VIDEO]

Authorities in Mexico have arrested a suspected drug cartel lieutenant believed to be responsible for the deaths of 350 people found in numerous graves across the Northern State of Durango. Mario Nunez the 39-year-old former police officer was arrested Tuesday in the city of Ciudad Juarez, on the border of El Paso, Texas. Also known as M-10, Nunez is the main suspect in the 2011 murders of 350 people. It is believed the murders were the result of a drug feud with a rival gang.

Nunez is part of the Sinaloa Gang and is reported to be the second highest ranking member of the cartel. The drug empire is run by "Mexico's most wanted man" Joaquin Guzman. "Much of the violence seen in the states of Chihuahua and Durango is partially because of the actions carried out by this man," said National Security spokesman Eduardo Sanchez to the International Business Times UK. It has been reported that Nunez is suspected to have ordered henchmen to carry out violent killings that included decapitation.

Mario Nunez is also wanted in the United States on federal drug trafficking charges. It is not clear if the US will seek to have M-10 extradited to the States. According to Fox US court documents suggest Guzman hired Nunez to carry out the job of grabbing the smuggling corridors into the United States from the rival Juarez Cartel. The Juarez Cartel and Sinaloa began a three year war that claimed the lives of the 350 people found in 23 graves in Durango. The war ended in 2011 with the bloody deaths of those found in the graves.

Ciudad Juarez, where Nunez was arrested was once hailed as the murder capital of the world. The rival drug gangs would cut a bloody bath on their rise to power. In 2010 the murder rate hit an all-time high with 3,116 deaths. Mario Nunez is facing a possible 40-year jail sentence if convicted.

More From Latin Times

Obama Gun Control: President Takes New Steps In Fight Against Guns, Closing Loophole Allowing Machine Gun Purchase

Saudi Arabia Passes First Laws Against Domestic Abuse; What Are They? [VIDEO]