Collateral Damage: The Falcon Lake Murder and Mexico's Drug Wars

We have been posting articles about the Falcon Lake murder mystery because the reported murder of  a U.S. citizen along the border with Mexico became a cause celebre. Now we post this "Sherlock Holmes " analysis of the case.

Stratfor, a private international intelligence company, received much press attention last week when it announced it had learned from "reliable sources in Mexico" that David Hartley was killed on Falcon Lake by low level Zetas who mistook him for a spy from another cartel. Here is a detailed explanation by Stratfor of the dynamics of the war between the various cartels that led to the killing and to the failure of Mexican authorities to find a body.

The Falcon Lake Murder and Mexico's Drug Wars | STRATFOR: "Viewing the murder as part of the bigger picture of what is occurring in Mexico makes it far easier to understand not only why David Hartley was killed, but why his body will likely never be found — and why his killers probably will not be held accountable for their actions, at least in the context of the judicial system." Oct. 21, 2010, Stratfor Report