Dauahare served as assistant defense minister between 2006 and 2008, while Escorcia led Mexican troops in the state of Morelos – regarded as Beltran-Leyva territory – before he retired in  2010. Gonzales was a military commander in the state of Colima – a drug trafficking route.
Mexican prosecutors also charged US-born Edgar “Barbie” Valdez, with murder and drug trafficking. Valdez confessed his involvement in drug trade in a taped police interview, following a 2010 arrest. Police believe he rose through the cartel ranks while working as a security guard for Arturo Beltran-Leyva.
Four Beltra-Leyva bothers, Marcos Arturo, Hector, Carlos and Alfredo founded the cartel but it began falling apart after Arturo was killed in a fight with Mexican marines in 2009.
Mexico has the highest rate of drug-related deaths in the world, with more than 50,000 people killed in the past six years.
