The U.S. Justice Department said an alleged leader of Mexico's Arellano Felix drug cartel has been extradited from Mexico to face criminal charges in San Diego.
A 2003 federal indictment said Rigoberto Yanez was the Tijuana-based cartel's main representative in Mexico City and their initial point of contact with Colombian drug traffickers.
Yanez is among 15 people who have been extradited to the United States from Mexico over the last week. They include Jose Manuel Escobedo, who was convicted of drug charges in 2004 in Texas and escaped from prison while serving a 10-year sentence.
Yanez has been in Mexican custody since 2007. The Arellano Felix cartel has been severely weakened in recent years.
