AMERICA/MEXICO - Alert for minors in the country recruited by drug dealers

Mexico City (Agenzia Fides) – The Drug and Force Administration (DEA), U.S. anti-drug federal agency, and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), said that in Mexico there are many children between 11 and 17 years of age recruited by drug dealers, as poles or spies. According to local sources of the Mexican press, the children come from both Mexico and the United States. The DEA said that the minors' compensation depends on the criminal gang that recruites them. For example, the Mexican criminal organization 'Zetas' and the 'Gulf cartel' offer an average of $ 500 for trafficking in drugs, $ 1,000 to control the hostages for a month or $ 1,500 to spy and get information concerning the authorities movements. San Diego, in California, on the border with Tijuana, Mexico, is one of the places where the level of recruitment has increased in recent months. According to the data, in southern California, the number of children put in prison has increased. The main crimes in which they are involved are drug dealing, kidnapping, complicity in extortion, piracy, corruption and espionage. In some cases the children were already part of gangs in the United States. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 09/01/2012)