![la%2Bbarbie%2Btransfer.png](http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-X-37V2ffeuE/VhnNUfu7Z3I/AAAAAAAAb-g/gSCE3C5cCNg/s1600/la%2Bbarbie%2Btransfer.png)
Alleged Top Mexican Cartel Member Pleads Guilty in Atlanta
A former Texas high school football player whom authorities say rose from petty street dealer to the top ranks of a Mexican drug cartel was responsible for sending truckloads of cocaine across the border for distribution in the eastern U.S., prosecutors said.
Edgar Valdez Villarreal, 42, is known as "La Barbie" because of his light eyes and complexion. Mexican police have said they chased him across five Mexican states for a year before they captured him on a ranch outside Mexico City in August 2010. He was among 13 people extradited to the U.S. in September to face charges.
Valdez pleaded guilty in federal court in Atlanta Wednesday to charges of conspiring to import and distribute cocaine and conspiring to launder money. Prosecutors have said he was responsible for sending thousands of kilograms of cocaine from Mexico for distribution in the eastern U.S. and shipping millions of dollars in cash back to Mexico.
The hearing was held under high security, with at least six armed U.S. marshals in and around the courtroom.
"Valdez's conviction is a victory for the people in both the United States and Mexico whose lives were affected by his cocaine trafficking, through drug addiction and community decay or through the violence and corruption associated with the cartel's daily business," said U.S. Attorney John Horn, who prosecuted the case.
Buddy Parker, an attorney for Valdez, had no comment after the plea was entered. Valdez's brother, who attended the hearing, also declined to comment.
Horn said it's impossible to know exactly how much cocaine Valdez is responsible for sending into the U.S., but he said that during one six-month period in 2005 at least 1,500 kilograms were sent to Atlanta alone. The cocaine was sold on a wholesale basis for between $16,000 and $18,000 per kilogram using a sophisticated network, Horn said.
one of his top customers, Craig Petties, a.k.a. Lil Dude, the half brother of DJ Paul from the rap group Three 6 Mafia. Lil Dude is serving nine life sentences for a raft of murder and drug charges related to his affiliation with La Barbie and the Beltrán Leyvas.
![petties1.jpg](http://www.usmarshals.gov/investigations/most_wanted/petties/petties1.jpg)