Benedict Oaxaca

Notes:

Postings:

September 1998 - July 1990
Ciudad, Mexico [MX234-521-CIU]
Money laundering operation. Successful in conviction of Pablo Rodriguez. Special Agent Oaxaca's investigative skills proved vital in establishing and proving links.

July 1990 - January 1991
Piedras Negras, Mexico [MX234-867-PNG]
Prostitution racket. Undercover work exposing illegal sex-slavery of young Mexican girls in exchange for US citizenship. Successful prosecution of Domingo Monterez (of Piedras Negras, Mexico) and Daniel Cartwright (of Austin, Texas).

February 1994 - June 1994
Las Cruces, Mexico [MS512-110-LCR]
Joint FBI-DEA investigation into drug running across the US border. Wounded in gunfight during a road on El Pais airfield. Credited with the deaths of eight drug-runners and having personally captured Ferdinand Jimminez, a lieutenant in the drug lord Enrico Dega's army, who later turned informant. The bust brought in cocaine worth $23m. Commendation despite complaints of brutality.

June 1994 - September 1994
Mexico City, Mexico
Hospital recovering from serious head trauma.

September 1994
Oaxaca, Mexico [MX312-665OZA]
Theft of archaeological relics from protected sites. Stolen native Zapatec Amerindian relics. Local elder Isodoro Gonzalez Cruz arrested. Agent Oaxaca's report discredited for some of his claims regarding events leading to the arrest. Cruz's possession of the antiques did lead to successful arrest and conviction.

October 1994 - December 1994
Oaxaca, Mexico [MX312-666OAX]
Ritualistic killings in Oaxaca of young male indigenous Zapatec Amerindians. Oaxaca killed Marco Ruiz de Azua, who was carrying PCP and several weapons including those used in ritual killings. Oaxaca reprimanded for allowing the escape of Isidoro Gonzalez Cruz who was released into his custody for questioning regarding the investigation, and for the removal of evidence without proper authorisation. Killings discontinued and Special Agent Oaxaca's report was accepted after internal investigation, despite concerns raised over evidence at the scene of crime.

January 1995 - February 1995
Santa Barbara, Mexico [MX512-978STB]
Mining sabotage at US owned copper mine. Eighteen worked killed in explosion during hunt for saboteur. SA Oaxaca's report suggested link to local cult, however this remains unproven. Sabotage stopped after explosion, which SA Oaxaca claims killed Salvador Rodriguez, a miner and cultist, who was responsible for the damage.

February 1995 - April 1995
Mexico City, Mexico
Held for psychological review.

April 1995 - August 1998
Mexico City, Mexico [MX957-MXC443]
Financial investigation into several front companies for Mexican crime-lords suspected of operating within US territory. Successful investigation allowed recovery of $168m in illicit funds after new accounts were traced and assets frozen and seized from Carlos Lapiaz, Diego Manzelli and Stephen Farrington who had been operating various cross-border criminal activities from Mexico City. Oaxaca is promoted to Senior Special Agent in November 1996 to head up his own team of investigators.

August 1998 - September 1999
No reports from his period.

September 1999 - March 2000
Nuevo Laredo, Mexico [MX684-122NLR]
Illegal alien smuggling. Crackdown on polleros (people smugglers). SSA Oaxaca chasing lead into Santa Pollero as a possible front. Colleagues complained SSA Oaxaca was providing wild and unrealistic explanations and suggested his reassignment. No approved.

March 2000 - August 2000
San Francisco, California
Compassionate leave to provide hospice care for father in San Francisco.

August 2000 - October 2000
San Francisco, California
Compulsory leave awaiting suitable assignment.

Background Information
Not held in Benedict's offical file

Born in San Francisco, California in 1961, Benedict was raised in South San Francisco where he graduated from South San Francisco High School. He received his bachelor's degree from Lafayette in Easton, PA in 1983 where he double-majored in Government & Law and Spanish. He completed his PhD programme in Accountancy at Stanford University, where he received his MA in 1987.

Joining the FBI in late 1987 he graduated top of his class in academics from Quantico, West Virginia in February 1988 and received his choice of assignment in the Criminal Investigation Division in Mexico City, Mexico, working in the Organised Crime section.

His first couple of cases were successful and he was placed in at the disposal of a joint FBI-DEA task force in February 1994, where he was tracing money-laundering operations of Enrico Dega. Joining a raid on El Pais airfield to seize an outbound plane cargo, Benedict and the team became involved in a serious gun battle, leading to heavy casualties on both sides. Benedict distinguished himself by taking out eight drug-runners and personally capturing Ferdinand Jimminez, despite having been shot in the head. Benedict severely beat Jimminez after realising that he was not going to remain conscious due to his wound. Not wanting Jimminez to escape, and fearful of not waking back up, he ensured the lieutenant could not escape independently. He was found bleeding severely next to the beaten Jimminez who had been secured to the base of his aircraft with cable ties. Benedict was cleared of complaints of brutality and a deal was struck with Jimminez to expose much of Dega's operation. His involvement earned him a commendation.

In 1994 Benedict was investigating the theft of Zapatec antiquities and arrested Isidoro Gonzalez Cruz after tracing a vehicle he had used. During the arrest Benedict cited supernatural defences invoked by Cruz, where were disbelieved by his superiors. Shortly after this arrest a series of brutal and ritual killings began, which Cruz had anticipated. Benedict believed Cruz's claims of something supernatural and released the old man into his custody and liberated some of his possessions from the evidence lockers. Together they tracked down and fought what Benedict believes, and Cruz claimed, was a demon. Benedict allowed Cruz to go after this incident and adjusted the crime scene to make the events he intended to relate seem more plausible.

Benedict soon stumbled upon what he believed was yet another supernatural occurrence. A mine in Santa Barbara had uncovered a 'natural' tunnel leading to an unnatural cavern. The miners who had worked on this vein seemed strange during questioning and Benedict followed the gang underground when the mine should have been closed. He observed some bizarre rituals taking place as the miners appeared to be digging for something specific to the new vein. He was fearful of what this signified when he was spotted by the leader, Marcos Ruiz de Azua. Escaping by destroying the shaft, Benedict was responsible for the explosion which shut off part of the mine and killed the eighteen miners. The incident was covered up after Benedict's report was more truthful than it should have been. His recent commendation kept him from being dropped and instead he was held for psychological review before being assigned to a desk for the next 3½ years. However, during this time he showed such a real flare for administrative leadership that he was promoted to Senior Special Agent.

In 1999 the CID stepped up their operation investigating organised people smuggling in the US. Benedict thus came across many immigrants who claimed they have been helped by the Santa Pollero (Holy Illegal Alien Smuggler), though to be the ghost of Toribio Romo, a Mexican cleric killed in 1928 during the Cristero wars. Suspected a renewal of the myth to cover a genuine illegal operation, Benedict investigated. All immigrants had been directed to look up Toribio in Jalostitlan, Jalisco when they had settled in. Jalostitlan was the location of the church where Toribio was killed, and the church displayed a picture of a man all the immigrants claimed to have seen. Benedict's theories on this case (supporting a 'guardian angel' theory) were not welcomed.

Benedict's career hit a new low when he began a relationship with Maria Solero, the niece of Sebastian Arista-Butron, a suspected low-level people smuggler, which created tension in the unit. Arista-Butron was thought to guide would be immigrants from Mexico City to Sasabe, Sonora, through the desert into an unknown location in the US. Circumstantial evidence existed along with some rumour, but nothing definite. As no direct link could be proved, Benedict felt entitled to continue the relationship, particularly as Maria herself was not implicated.

Benedict's relationship was broken off when his father, Alberto Oaxaca, took ill in late 1999 and he returned to San Francisco on compassionate leave. After his father died he requested to return to his duties but was informed that there was no place available for him at that time. He had two months on enforced leave until a suitable assignment could be found for him. He initially put his name forward for the Cold Case Unit when he found out there were investigating a Mexican antiquities art fraud case, which interested him, but he was turned down for the post. A recent opening flagged up his name as a candidate and he was assigned shortly afterwards.

Benedict is of Afro-Mexican heritage. He became interested in Mexico after spending his junior year in college studying Spanish in Mexico City. After getting a handle on the language, he started studying history and the culture of the country. Benedict's personal interests include sports, particularly football (San Francisco 49ers and the San Francisco Giants). He also has a passion for Afro-Latin (salsa) music - including classics like Eddie Palmieri, Ray Barretto, Cheo Feliciano, Ruben Blades, Celiz Cruz Cachao etc. Benedict's mother died in an earthquake in San Francisco in 1985, his father passed away July 2000 after a long period of illness.

Benedict is conscious that his theories can isolate him and he is not keen to have any further marks on his record. However, his experiences of working alongside Mexican Law Enforcement agencies have also adjusted his expectations of acceptable protocol. He is willing to use violence, bend the rules and with-hold evidence if it gets results and keeps him out of trouble.

Recent Events

The following events have been highlighted as having special significance for Benedict since joining the mid-west evidence response team. Please see the Timeline to place these incidents in context.

30 November 2000

Benedict joins the mid-west evidence response team. He arrives in Wichita and immediately travels to Hawaii on case 0016-GCF.

2 December 2000

Benedict almost has his foot burned off while rushing to escape an exploding volcano on the Hawaiian island of Kahoolawe. He is hospitalised in Honolulu.

5 December 2000

Against doctor's orders, Benedict discharges himself from hospital and joins the rest of the mid-west evidence response team investigating case CS1473-IND in Casper, Wyoming. Later this day he discovers that Ward Industries, that owns the copper mine in Casper, also owned the copper mine in Santa Barbara that Benedict blew up to kill a group of cultists in 1995.

6 December 2000

Benedict analyses a mysterious mineral ressembling green rice. He gets the mineral on his hands, but it seems to have no effect on hime, at least at present.

10 December 2000

Captured by Ukrainian commandos at the Mary Estate in Casper, Wyoming. Later he is involved in a head-on car crash with Dominic Rocaan that is not his fault.

11 December 2000

Dies several times in hospital in Casper, Wyoming thanks to his exposure to that green rice-like mineral. The mineral has the strange effect of increasing his physical abilities and mental acuity, but at the price of his sanity.

14 December 2000

Discovers that old friend Special Agent Owen Sawell is dead.

15 December 2000

Discovers that exposure to the green mineral has made him a non-secretor just like Apache Joe.

19 December 2000

In the evidence response reshuffle retain his position in the mid-west team.

22 December 2000

Meets Valerie

See Also

• Benedict Oaxaca entry in the Who's Who? section.