“Socalj” for Borderland Beat
 |
 |
| The small rural town of Killorglin, Kerry, Ireland. |
A”Troubled Child”
“He was a thug and a bully. If you ever did something or said something that he did not like he would start to throw his weight around. He used to tell us that he had links to the cartels back in Mexico. We thought he was messing and that it was just bravado.”
The ex-schoolmate said O’Shea also attacked another student, right as he began school in Ireland. “The teacher’s back was turned and he grabbed (the student’s head) and tried to slam it onto the desk.
In October 2009, he appeared in court, charged with 14 offenses including criminal damage, possession of a firearm, public order, theft, handling stolen property, and failing to comply with gardaí (police).
 |
Relationship to Chapo
“They are related to the Sinaloa Cartel [and] are close relatives of Chapo Guzmán,” national prosecutor Jorge Abbott told the media.
 |
| María Alejandrina Salazar Hernández |
Former neighbors in Killorglin have been in shock ever since news of his alleged role in the cartel emerged last month.
One resident said, “I knew him well enough. He was a young fella and was quite quiet. “I know it is a cliché, but he did keep to himself. I saw the news about him being down in Mexico and could not believe it. Everyone in the town’s talking about it, it’s hard to believe.”
“There was nothing that stood out about them at all, he was just a kid at the time. Everyone called him “Mexican,” that was his nickname. He was into fitness, I remember, and he was good at boxing.”
Sinaloa Cartel in Bolivia & Chile
Yolanda Salazar Tarriba and her brother Ricardo Salazar Tarriba are said to have arrived in Chile in 2020 to coordinate the purchase of cocaine from Bolivia and its subsequent shipment abroad.
According to the investigation, this operation was directed by Morris O’Shea who was living in Spain at the time, and currently he resides in Mexico.
O’Shea’s cell would import cocaine from Bolivia, which would be “collected in the commune of Alto Hospicio, to finally be shipped to various ports and airports in Europe, in countries such as Belgium, the Netherlands, and Spain.”
 |
Undercover Operation
Yolanda Salazar Tarrib and her brother Ricardo (Morris’ Uncle) acquired a little more than 61 kilos of cocaine which were due to be sent to Europe as samples for potential buyers. The Salazar-Tarriba group was infiltrated by the Chilean Civil Police after information was provided by the DEA. This is the first time that the presence of the Sinaloa Mexican cartel in Chile has been confirmed. The investigation prevented the entry of 6 tons of Bolivian cocaine into Chile.
In Europe, the container was searched by the authorities and then the alleged members of the Sinaloa Cartel gave up their business and tried to escape from Chile. But they were detained at the Santiago airport.
 |
In March 2021, Ricardo and Yolanda Salazar Tarriba were arrested and charged as they attempted to flee. However, prosecutors claim it was not possible to detain Morris O’Shea, despite “coordination” between the Chilean Prosecutor’s Office and the Spanish Civil Guard.
Chile’s Extradition Request to Mexico
The Chilean Prosecutor’s Office carried out investigations on the Sinaloa Cartel between 2012 and 2015, but no incursions were located and no further reports were disclosed. Now, the intentions of the criminal group to expand in Chile as a starting point towards Europe, but also in local drug dealing, was recognized.
“Chile stopped being a drug transit country; in fact, widely known cartels from Mexico are trying to establish themselves in Chile, ”Jorge Abbott declared at the time, presenting the latest report from the Observatory on Drug Trafficking in Chile.
Unlike its neighbors Bolivia and Peru, Chile is not a drug producer but it is a destination country and a distribution platform to Asia, Europe, and the US due to its many ports.
The Kinahan Cartel, originally from Ireland and now based possibly still in Dubai after leaving Spain 6 years ago, has maintained links to the Sinaloa cartel for over a decade. It is believed by authorities that the Kinahans and Sinaloa Cartel had direct communications links to arrange shipments of cocaine.
Sources Irish Mirror, Sunday World, Irish Mirror, Borderland Beat, La Tercera, Extra.ie