Bogota, Sep 2 (EFE).- Authorities seized $28 million in two operations this week and are trying to determine whether the money is linked to Mexican drug cartels, Colombian Attorney General Guillermo Mendoza said Thursday.
A vehicle containing $12 million was seized on Monday and $16 million was found in another automobile on Wednesday in Bogota, the AG told RCN radio.
Mendoza commented after being asked about the statements made by detained Mexican drug capo Edgar Valdez Villarreal, known as "La Barbie," that he had partners in Colombia.
"There is much information about the relationship between Mexican organized crime and Colombian drug traffickers. The thing is that we have to carefully analyze each of these theories," Mendoza said.
Police arrested 11 people Tuesday linked to Valdez Villarreal in operations staged in five different cities in Colombia.
The investigation aimed at capturing Valdez Villarreal's contacts in Colombia lasted more than 18 months and resulted in arrests being made in Bogota, Medellin, Cali, Buenaventura and Pereira.
Julio Cesar Piña Soberanis, a Mexican suspected of acting as Valdez Villarreal's emissary, was arrested in Pereira, a city in west-central Colombia.
Piña Soberanis is wanted for extradition by Mexico.
Valdez Villarreal was one of the most-wanted drug traffickers in the world until Monday, when he was arrested near Mexico City.
