Witness: Suspect was cartel's bag man

BROWNSVILLE, Texas (AP) - A man with family ties to the Mexican Gulf cartel boss says a cartel member standing trial in Brownsville acted on several occasions as the leader's bag man picking up and receiving cash payments.

Alejandro Jimenez, a 45-year-old with multiple drug convictions, began working for the cartel in the late 1990s. He testified Wednesday in the trial of Juan Roberto Rincon-Rincon, whom witnesses say was a bodyguard and plaza boss in the Gulf cartel.

Jimenez's brother-in-law was a cousin of Jorge Eduardo Costilla Sanchez, who was the cartel's boss before his capture this month. Jimenez testified that Costilla sent Rincon-Rincon to pick up money from successful smuggling attempts.

Authorities allege that large loads of marijuana seized near the border in Texas last year passed through territory controlled by Rincon-Rincon.