Hacker group Anonymous releases video alleging South Texas corruption

More South Texas officials will be arrested for corruption following Hidalgo County Sheriff Lupe Treviño's guilty plea in April to federal money laundering charges, members from the worldwide "hacktivist" group Anonymous claim in a YouTube video.

The video, which has nearly 100,000 views since being published Friday, shows a person in a mask with computer-generated audio alleging that several Hidalgo County officials, ranging from county commissioners and school district officials, are involved in money laundering related to Mexican drug cartel activity in the region.

"It's your job to voice out the corrupted officials if you wish to still be living in a safe community," the person says in the video, which is at the end of the gallery above.

The person adds, "If you guys don't voice your opinions and support the activists and candidates that are battling these hideous officials, you will soon see martial law, DPS checkpoints, military movement in effect due to the high level of corruption and insecurity across the whole border."

In a YouTube video released Oct. 17, 2014, by the worldwide "hacktivist" group Anonymous claims, a person in a Guy Fawkes mask, popularized by the dystopian comic book and 2005 film "V for Vendetta" and adopted by Anonymous, alleges several officials — including Hidalgo County commissioners and school district officials — are involved in money laundering related to Mexican drug cartel activity in the region. less In a YouTube video released Oct. 17, 2014, by the worldwide "hacktivist" group Anonymous claims, a person in a Guy Fawkes mask, popularized by the dystopian comic book and 2005 film "V for Vendetta" and adopted ... more Photo: Fechter, Joshua I, YouTube Photo: Fechter, Joshua I, YouTube Image 1 of / 50 Caption Close Hacker group Anonymous releases video alleging South Texas corruption 1 / 50 Back to Gallery

Requests for comment were not immediately returned by Hidalgo County officials.

This isn't the first time Anonymous has taken aim at cartel-fueled corruption: in 2013, the group posted information about ranches they claimed belong to Mexican politicians used by the Zetas to smuggle drugs into the United States, the San Antonio Express-News reported.

They also posted information about Facebook pages and Twitter handles used by Zetas and other cartels to communicate and spread propaganda.

Treviño admitted in April to accepting money from Weslaco-based drug trafficker Tomas "El Gallo" Gonzalez, who is suspected of running a drug trafficking organization from 2007 to 2013 that moved thousands of kilograms of marijuana and hundreds of kilograms of cocaine from the Rio Grande Valley to Arkansas, Tennessee, Alabama and Georgia.

Gonzalez gave some of the proceeds from the trade to Treviño, who admitted to accepting the money for his election campaign despite knowing the money was derived from illegal activities.

Federal prosecutors said Treviño also attempted to conceal the "nature, location, source, ownership and control" of the money by filing false campaign finance reports, the San Antonio Express-News reported.

Former Hidalgo County Sheriff's Commander Jose A. Padilla also pleaded guilty in April to receiving cash from Gonzalez in 2011 and 2012 in exchange for information about ongoing law enforcement activities.

The mask worn in the video is a Guy Fawkes mask, popularized by the dystopian comic book and 2005 film "V for Vendetta" and adopted by Anonymous members and supporters.

View Anonymous' Oct. 17 video here.

Staff writers Aaron Nelsen and Jason Buch contributed to this report.

jfechter@express-news.net

Twitter: @JFreports