BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) -- Using a nearly 6-foot tall chart and dozens of photos, the nephew of former Mexican Gulf cartel kingpin Osiel Cardenas Guillen led federal jurors through a decade of cartel restructuring at the South Texas trial of another cartel manager.
On trial is Juan Roberto Rincon-Rincon, a former cartel bodyguard who briefly controlled the cartel's smuggling routes through Rio Bravo before fleeing cartel infighting to Texas in October.
But 38-year-old Rafael Cardenas Vela, nephew of both Cardenas Guillen and Antonio Ezequiel Cardenas Guillen, has been the star witness.
Also known as "Tony Tormenta," Cardenas Guillen pleaded guilty to a drug conspiracy charge in March.
The one-time rising star within the cartel walked jurors in Brownsville on Friday through each significant event since 2002 and the turmoil and reshuffling that followed.
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