Coban

None of the 21 suspects taken into custody since December in Coban is a Mexican national, and authorities said the Zetas commanders have probably slipped back into Mexico or relocated to more lawless parts of Guatemala.

Mexican drug cartels draws Guatemalan army to jungles where it fought civil war William Booth 2011

Many of the arms were recovered at a farm on the outskirts of Coban, where they had been hastily buried in grain sacks beneath towering palms and plants heavy with coffee beans.

Mexican drug cartels draws Guatemalan army to jungles where it fought civil war William Booth 2011

Marco Tulio Vasquez Sanchez, commander of the 300 troops now patrolling Coban and the surrounding area.

Mexican drug cartels draws Guatemalan army to jungles where it fought civil war William Booth 2011

The city of Coban and the surrounding Alta Verapaz region sit at the crossroads of many of those smuggling corridors.

Mexican drug cartels draws Guatemalan army to jungles where it fought civil war William Booth 2011

Unlike in Mexico, where cartel gunmen stage brazen assaults on government officials and security forces, the criminals in Coban have not followed through on the threats of attack.

Mexican drug cartels draws Guatemalan army to jungles where it fought civil war William Booth 2011

Before soldiers arrived in Coban in December, the people of this farming town of 80,000 say they were powerless to confront the rapacious outsiders who rode through the streets in shiny new SUVs, brandishing automatic weapons and looking to recruit local talent with fat wads of dollar bills, especially former Guatemalan special-forces soldiers.

Mexican drug cartels draws Guatemalan army to jungles where it fought civil war William Booth 2011

And if the Skolian Imperialate knew of his captivity, there would be demands for vengeance, ravaging Coban-and killing the wife and children Kelric had left behind when he escaped.

Reviews of fantasy and science fiction books Kristen 2010

He had been a prisoner and slave on the planet Coban, part of neither empire, until he had managed to escape.

Reviews of fantasy and science fiction books Kristen 2010

In the city of Coban, national police and soldiers are searching homes and inspecting all cars as they enter and leave the provincial capital.

Guatemalan Military Controls Province Associated Press 2010

Eight years ago I began an annual bike ride to Coban, 255 km to the north.

Tracy L. Barnett: Critical Mass Takes to the Streets in Guatemala City 2010