The 'National Counterterrorism Center' (NCTC) is doing a magnificent job!

 

Gabbard touts new takedowns of cartel leaders

By Wendi Strauch Mahoney www.americanthinker.com

In recent weeks, U.S. and Mexican authorities — fed by intelligence from the National Counterterrorism Center (NCTC) — have arrested three high-impact cartel figures:

• The Sept. 2, 2025 arrest of Martha Alicia Mendez Aguilar, AKA “La Diabla,” a high-ranking CJNG-linked member accused of running a gruesome infant-trafficking and organ-harvesting ring in Ciudad Juárez.

• An Oct. 2, 2025 arrest of a Sinaloa cartel cocaine facilitator, Jason Duncker, who was tied to multi-kilo shipments and money-laundering near Monterrey, Mexico.  He worked for the Sinaloa and Gulf cartels, allegedly helping to move more than 75 kg of cocaine into the U.S., and laundered hundreds of thousands of dollars for both cartels.

• The Oct. 21, 2025 arrest of “El Pato,” a Sinaloa boss whose crew mixed classic organized crime with terrorist-style violence.  Leonardo Daniel Martinez Vera was arrested in Juárez, Mexico, and was “allegedly responsible for leading a wide range of illicit activities, including drug trafficking, extortion, kidnapping, and murder.”  NCTC “provided timely and accurate information to Mexican authorities” for the raid of two houses while in search of El Pato.  Three others were apprehended for money-laundering.

In an October 24 White House roundtable on national security, director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard said each takedown was enabled by fast, “actionable” intelligence pushed to the field, thanks to the new Interagency Fusion Cell (NIFC) inside NCTC.

Six months old, the NIFC is a physically co-located shop where the Intelligence Community (I.C.) and front-line law enforcement sit together, move leads quickly, declassify what’s needed, and support operations in real time against foreign terrorist gangs and cartels.  The cell is the intelligence engine behind the administration’s Homeland Security Task Force (HSTF), to which the White House attributes 3,000+ arrests and 150,000+ pounds of seized narcotics to date.  Gabbard said the NIFC effectively turbocharges intelligence-sharing.

The United States has had “fusion” centers for years.  But this time, Gabbard is in charge.  Her goal with the NIFC is to cut through the bureaucratic red tape that can greatly hinder the capture of high-value targets.  Housing the cell at ODNI/NCTC does three things at once.

1. It collapses timelines.  Cartel targets are usually mobile, and longer analytic cycles on intelligence can miss the window of opportunity.  Co-location allows analysts, information collectors, and case agents to produce actionable plans in hours and days, not weeks.

2. It unlocks channels by treating designated cartels and transnational gangs as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs), thanks to Trump administration policies.  The designation reframes the threat environment, opening terrorism-oriented intelligence channels and speeding declassification pathways to clear the way for holding facilitators accountable under material support frameworks.

3. It prioritizes critical targets, as exemplified by the capture of key figures like La Diabla and her baby-trafficking ring, not just low-level mules and lackeys.

The Sept. 2, 2025 arrest of La Diabla exemplifies how critical NCTC-NIFC coordination is.  The real-time coordination of U.S. intelligence and the NCTC in a joint operation with Mexican law enforcement has arguably saved countless mothers and infants from horrific treatment.  NCTC Director Joe Kent explains the efficiency of the coordinated operation in his Sept. 24, 2025 ODNI press release:

This is one example of what terrorist cartels will do to diversify their revenue streams and finance operations. NCTC delivered critical intelligence on “La Diabla’s” location and developed comprehensive analysis that enabled U.S. and Mexican law enforcement partners to take action. I am proud of our team’s ability to work with our forward deployed U.S. partners and Mexican law enforcement to stop these horrific acts. NCTC remains committed to disrupting all aspects of terrorist cartels and their operations. And in this case, the lives of innocent women and children depended on it.

NCTC said La Diabla’s arrest “was supported by U.S. Marshals Service (USMS) El Paso, the U.S. Department of State’s Diplomatic Security Service (DSS), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) El Paso, and U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and executed by Mexican law enforcement partners and Fiscalia Especializada en la Mujer (the Special Prosecutor’s Office for Women).”

Briefly describing the horrific human-trafficking operation during the roundtable, Gabbard said NCTC coordinated the operation and “provid[ed] intelligence to Mexican law enforcement that led to the arrest of CJNG cartel-affiliated baby trafficker La Diabla.  Her operation centered around luring pregnant women and then performing [illegal] C-sections, harvesting organs, and selling newborn babies.”

Infants were allegedly sold on the black market for up to 250,000 pesos (about $14,000) each.  Gabbard credited President Trump “for making all of this possible,” even during a government shutdown.

President Trump has been unrelenting with the cartels, designating international cartels and cartel-affiliated gangs both here and abroad as foreign terrorist organizations in a Jan. 20, 2025 executive order.  The designation was later affirmed in a fact sheet published by the secretary of State in February 2025.

Kent also highlighted the importance and granularity of the coordinated effort that facilitated the arrest of Duncker in his Oct. 6, 2025 press release.

NCTC employs some of the best analysts and targeters in the world — experts at putting tactical intelligence into the hands of law enforcement officers on the ground. They know where terrorists work, sleep, and park their cars. Thursday’s arrest sends a clear message to terrorists: we will find you. I am proud of the NCTC team’s patriotism, resolve, and commitment to eradicating terrorist threats to the United States.

The Trump administration has been transparent about its efforts to keep our borders safe.  However, to continue to keep the public informed, ODNI should consider publishing a recurring NCTC scorecard that tracks arrests and extraditions attributable to the cell and documents measurable network disruption — financiers removed, labs closed, precursor chokepoints cut, and logistics corridors degraded.  Gabbard should also continue to ensure regular announcements on prosecutions and asset seizures linked to NCTC/NIFC operations.