Juan Garca Brego

Mexican drug smuggler who reportedly has two birth certificates, one in Mexico and the other in Texas, and who became the center of dispute between Mexico and the US when he was arrested for drug trafficking in early 1999. Mexico deported him to the US but two copies of his birth certificate were produced, although he carried no passport. According to a news report, Mexico's interior ministry faxed copies of his birth registration certificate from Cameron County, Texas, to the news media to ensure there is no doubt. The same news article reported that municipal authorities in Matamoros "confirmed ... That Garcia Abrego is also registered as having been born on a ranch just outside Matamoros.""It says ... The child Juan Garcia Abrego was born at two o'clock on Sept. 13, 1944, on the ranch La Puerta in this municipality." The birth was registered on July 9, 1945. Although the drug baron seemed to have considered himself an American for most purposes, the US was criticized for deporting him so quickly from Mexico back to the US. Critics claim that the Mexican government wanted him out quickly before he could reveal anything incriminating his Mexican contacts. According to current Mexican law at the time of his arrest, he could not hold dual citizenship. Mexican citizens give up their rights when they become citizens of another country. Link to Wikipedia biography