Cartel Chronicles

Las autoridades de México se han encontrado con una nueva tendencia en la que los narcotraficantes de Sinaloa disfrazan cargamentos de fentanilo como proteína en polvo que envían a la frontera con California.

Mexican military forces killed nine Gulf Cartel gunmen during a series of confrontations in the northern part of the border state of Tamaulipas.

Las fuerzas militares mexicanas mataron a nueve sicarios del Cártel del Golfo durante una serie de enfrentamientos en la parte norte del estado de Tamaulipas.

A group of suspected cartel gunmen left a dismembered body hanging from a pedestrian overpass in central Mexico as criminal organizations announce a new fight over the street-level drug market. During the day, authorities found three more similar crime scenes where gunmen left body parts next to threats.

A narco-terrorist organization, the Gulf Cartel, kidnapped three innocent laborers after mistaking them for rivals. The case turned fatal when one of the kidnapping victims died in a car crash along with two cartel gunmen who were moving him.

La organización narcoterrorista conocida como Cartel del Golfo secuestró a tres trabajadores inocentes después de confundirlos con rivales. El caso se volvió fatal cuando una de las víctimas del secuestro murió en un accidente automovilístico junto con dos sicarios mientras los llevaban a otra parte.

Mexican authorities formally charged a leading figure with the Cartel Del Noreste faction of Los Zetas for the murder of a respected journalist in the border state of Tamaulipas. Authorities believe the journalist was murdered for his work covering crime in the region. The charges come a year after the murder and are part of a larger investigation into the criminal organization’s shootings, kidnappings, and murders in the region.

Mexico’s Immigration Officials dismissed claims of abuse by a Colombian actress who flew into Mexico City. The allegations come at a time when agents with Mexico’s National Migration Institute (INM) continue to be linked to numerous acts of corruption, abuse, and bribery while the country has become a hotspot for human trafficking and human smuggling.

A mass kidnapping in Mexico that led to the murder of a U.S. citizen from Arizona is believed to be linked to a cartel fraud operation based out of a call center in the Mexican state of Jalisco.

Taxi drivers in Cancun have been attacking Uber drivers and tourists in an attempt to keep a defacto monopoly on the transportation sector. Taxi drivers used bats, rocks, knives, and even handguns to intimidate and attack ride-share app drivers. At times, the taxi drivers also attacked tourists using the ride-share services.

Mexico’s top security official revealed that a mass kidnapping in the state of Jalisco is possibly tied to criminal activities carried out at a call center. One of the now seven victims that are reported missing is a U.S. citizen from Arizona.

Authorities are searching for four men and a woman who went missing on their way to work this week in the Mexican state of Jalisco. One of the missing individuals is a U.S. citizen who was born in Arizona.

El reciente secuestro de dos adolescentes en el estado fronterizo de Tamaulipas ha revelado el uso de vehículos y uniformes policiales clonados por sicarios del Cartel del Golfo para llevar a cabo secuestros y otras operaciones. Los hombres armados se han hecho pasar por miembros de la Guardia Nacional de México.

The recent kidnapping of two teenagers in the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas revealed the use of cloned police vehicles and uniforms by Gulf Cartel gunmen to carry out enforcement operations. The gunmen impersonated members of Mexico’s National Guard.

Sinaloa Cartel leaders and a former top leader sent conflicting letters to Mexican news outlets regarding who is to blame for fentanyl smuggling into the United States.

A group of cartel gunmen shot and killed ten people and injured at least nine others during an attack at an off-road event in the Mexican border state of Baja California.

A fierce turf war between rival factions of the Gulf Cartel turned one of the main cities in Tamaulipas into a war zone. Convoys of gunmen in armored vehicles clashed while Mexican authorities continue their claim that the state is safe and that violence in a myth spread through social media.

Una fuerte lucha territorial entre facciones rivales del Cártel del Golfo ha convertido a una de las principales ciudades de Tamaulipas en una zona de guerra, donde se han enfrentado convoyes de sicarios en vehículos blindados mientras las autoridades mexicanas continúan afirmando que el estado es seguro y que la violencia en un mito difundido a través de las redes sociales.

Mexican authorities arrested a key leader within the Sinaloa Cartel that prosecutors claim is behind a large portion of the violence in the tourist hotspot of Cancun and surrounding areas.

Mexico’s President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador visited the border cities of Matamoros and Reynosa, Tamaulipas, to inspect the progress in a series of changes to the customs offices. However, during those visits, the president refused to address the growing cartel violence in the state. He instead claimed he had faith in the current governor.

El presidente de México, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, visitó las ciudades fronterizas de Matamoros y Reynosa para inspeccionar el progreso de una serie de cambios en las oficinas de aduanas. Sin embargo, durante esas visitas, el político se negó a abordar la creciente narcoviolencia en el estado alegando que tenía fe en el actual gobernador.

Authorities in Tijuana shut down a famed strip club in connection with the ongoing investigation into the homicide of a U.S. Army soldier. Mexican authorities continue to keep most of the information on the case out of the public eye.

Las autoridades de Tijuana cerraron un famoso club de striptease en relación con la investigación en curso sobre el homicidio de un soldado del ejército estadounidense. Sin embargo, las autoridades mexicanas mantienen la mayor parte de la información sobre el caso bajo reserva.

One of Mexico’s most violent criminal organizations delivered small appliances as Mother’s Day gifts to dozens of women in low-income neighborhoods. The deliveries arrived in various cities in the Mexican state of Michoacan as a way to earn public support.

Una de las organizaciones criminales más violentas de México entregó pequeños electrodomésticos a decenas de mujeres en barrios populares de varias ciudades como una forma de ganarse el apoyo público.

Sinaloa Cartel smugglers hid a shipment of crystal meth by disguising it as packages of coffee beans and used a commercial shipping company to transport it. The method is similar to prior seizures that have been reported in the Mexican states of Tamaulipas and Nuevo Leon, where smugglers shipped boxes and packages with synthetic drugs to these border states.

Within a matter of days, Mexican military forces arrested three top cartel leaders from rival factions of the Gulf Cartel and their allies. Authorities say the leaders are partly responsible for a fierce turf war being fought throughout the border state of Tamaulipas.

Mexican authorities remain tight-lipped about a weekend raid in the border city of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, targeting the son of a top regional Gulf Cartel boss. The quietness behind the raid led locals to speculate if the move could be an attempt to negotiate a deal in order to stop the recent turf war between rival factions of the Gulf Cartel plaguing the border region.

Authorities in the Mexican coastal state of Colima announced the discovery of ten mass graves filled with 26 bodies. The discovery comes at a time when even tourist destinations are experiencing a wave of kidnappings and disappearances as drug cartels continue to wage fierce territorial disputes throughout Mexico.

Authorities in Mexico discovered eight bodies as they carried out a search in various locations throughout the city of Cancun for locals previously reported kidnapped or missing. The discovery and subsequent searches come at a time when the tourist hotspot is experiencing a dramatic rise in violence as rival criminal organizations fight for control of the lucrative local drug and sex trade.

A once peaceful Mexican southern border state is experiencing alarming rates of violence, including large-scale gunbattles, kidnappings, and other violent crimes as criminal organizations fight for control of migrant and drug trafficking routes.

Cartel violence continues to escalate in the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas, particularly around its capital and surrounding communities as the Gulf Cartel seeks to expand its territories. This move by the cartel brought a rise in violence that is negatively impacting local communities.

Migrants in the border city of Matamoros, Tamaulipas, are in fear of violent reactions by the Gulf Cartel after a group of migrants from Venezuela charged people to cross the waters of the Rio Grande. The move drew the attention of the Gulf Cartel as the criminal organization controls all illegal crossings in the region.

Los migrantes en la ciudad fronteriza de Matamoros temen las reacciones violentas del Cártel del Golfo luego de que un grupo de migrantes de Venezuela cobrara a las personas para cruzar las aguas del Río Bravo. Esa movida llamó la atención del Cártel del Golfo ya que la organización criminal es la que controla todos los cruces ilegales en la región.

Seven cartel gunmen died and several other individuals sustained gunshot wounds during a series of shootouts in western Mexico. The region experienced several days of fighting as gunmen from La Familia Michoacana fought against gunmen from Cartel Jalisco New Generation.

Siete sicarios murieron y varias otras personas sufrieron heridas de bala durante una serie de tiroteos en el oeste de México. La región ha visto durante varios días enfrentamientos entre sicarios de La Familia Michoacana y sicarios del Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación.