NAME — Teodoro Garcia Simental

NICKAMES — El Teo, El Tres Letras

BIRTH YEAR — 1974

BACKGROUND — He was once considered a top hit man for Tijuana's dominant cartel, the family-run Arellano-Felix. After law enforcement arrested or killed most of the Tijuana cartel leaders in 2008, Garcia launched a new group affiliated with the Sinaloa Cartel. The splintered organizations have been involved in a violent turf battle in Tijuana.

REPUTATION — Police say Garcia is particularly brutal and that his forces executed, beheaded and mutilated hundreds of rivals in Tijuana, sometimes pinning notes to the corpses, other times dissolving the bodies in caustic soda.

TERRITORY — Police say he attempted to control eastern Tijuana and Rosarito Beach.

(This version CORRECTS that bodies dissolved in caustic soda sted acid.)

'Success is zero deaths on the roadway' Newsday reporters spent this year examining the risks on Long Island's roads, where traffic crashes over a decade killed more than 2,100 people and seriously injured more than 16,000. This documentary is a result of that newsroom-wide effort.

'Success is zero deaths on the roadway' Newsday reporters spent this year examining the risks on Long Island's roads, where traffic crashes over a decade killed more than 2,100 people and seriously injured more than 16,000. This documentary is a result of that newsroom-wide effort.

SUBSCRIBE

Unlimited Digital AccessOnly 25¢for 6 months

ACT NOWSALE ENDS SOON | CANCEL ANYTIME