Mexican “norteño” singer nabbed in drug bust

A Mexican singer known by the nickname of “El Halcón de la Sierra” (“The Hawk of the Mountain Range”) was arrested for alleged ties to a local drug capo.

Fabián Ortega Piñón was nabbed in Baja California along with an accomplice of drug gang leader Teodoro García Simental as part of a sting operation on Tuesday. Police along with other law enforcement agents uncovered one kilo of drugs, several arms, and $20,000 in cash.

Ortega Piñón is a prolific musician with over forty albums to his name and is said to be very popular along the border area of the U.S. and Mexico. The 27-year-old specializes in the norteña and ranchera genres and had sung several narcocorridos, ballads that are based on the drug trade. Ortega Piñón had performed with Valentín Elizalde, a fellow singer who was killed after a 2008 concert supposedly on orders by drug gangs. Ortega Piñón’s next gig was supposed to be an Independence Day concert in California.

Below is one of Ortega Piñón’s songs, a tender ballad entitled “La Primavera” (“The Spring”):

Online Sources- Milenio, El Universal, SDP Noticias, BBC News, YouTube, Wikipedia