On 30 August 2010, Villarreal was captured by Mexican Federal Police. While other organizations expanded into human trafficking and extortion, among other activities, the Sinaloa cartel remained largely centred on drugs. The Sinaloa Cartel's tentacles stretch from New York City to Buenos Aires and almost every major city in between. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Sinaloa-cartel, The Brookings Institution - How the Sinaloa Cartel rules, Mexicos ex-public security chief convicted in US drug case, Key witness testifies about bribing ex-Mexico security chief. [69], As of 2023, the Sinaloa Cartel remains Mexico's most dominant drug cartel. Photo illustration by Luis G. Rendon/The Daily Beast; GettyA member of the Jalisco New Generation Cartelhis stomach straining against a black sleeveless vestis crouching over the body of a mutilated foot soldier from a rival crime group. In this case, he recalled, the payout to . history. [118], Due to the leadership of the organization essentially being split between the Mayo Zambada and Los Chapitos factions of the cartel, much of the state of Sinaloa is also split territorially. According to reports at the time, it was responsible for the majority of illegal drugsnotably marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetaminesthat were smuggled from Mexico into its northern neighbour, and in 2015 U.S. officials claimed that Sinaloa controlled the drug markets in almost every state. [120] The Sinaloa Cartel also reportedly has a major presence in Colombia and has partnered with various paramilitary drug cartels such as the Clan del Golfo. One YouTube video sympathetic to the Sinaloa Cartel opens with white lettering: "This is what happens to all my enemies." A singer launches into an up-tempo song against a montage of images: slain . They established the patterns that we see repeated today: movement of bulk shipments of cocaine via airplane and boat to Central America and Mexico, then by land routes into the United States. Jesus BustamanteReuters. This eventually led to Ramn Arellano Flix killing two of Guzmn's associates thus leading to a full-fledged war between the two organizations. El Cartel de Sinaloa es considerada como una de las organizaciones criminales dedicadas al narcotrfico ms antiguas en Mxico: dnde opera y quines son sus lderes? Police stand guard behind a parapet of sandbags, at the entrance to Santa Rosa de Lima, birthplace of a local cartel that goes by the same name, in Guanajuato state, Mexico on Feb. 12, 2020. The corrupt cops allegedly had a deal that entitled them to half the value of any drug shipment taken from an opposing cartel thanks to their information. Matta Ballesteros lived part-time in Colombia, where he operated as the main intermediary between Mexican and Colombian traffickers, particularly the Medelln and Guadalajara Cartels. We go into the field to interview, report and investigate. Nor does the selectivity and calibration of Sinaloa's use of violence mean that the Cartel, including El Chapo, have shied away from brutal torture of captured internal or external enemies, as . The Sinaloa Cartel (Spanish: Crtel de Sinaloa),[48][49] also known as the CDS, the Guzmn-Zambada Organization, the Pacific Cartel,[50] the Federation and the Blood Alliance,[51][52][53] is a large, international organized crime syndicate that specializes in illegal drug trafficking and money laundering. Pedro Avils would eventually die in a shootout with federal police in September 1978 in Sinaloa. Here is the fuk up thing. [180][181][182] Evidence that runs counter to a mistake theory is that Posadas did not look anything like Guzmn, he was wearing a long black cassock and a large pectoral cross, and he was gunned down from only two feet away. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. EL PASO, Texas (Border Report) Ten days after escaping supervised release in San Diego, a convicted Sinaloa cartel enforcer and two family members have been murdered in Culiacan, Mexican newspapers report.. The Sinaloa cartel "has fought brutally for increased control of routes through the border states of Chihuahua and Baja California, with the goal of remaining the dominant drug trafficking . [73][74] Currently, the "Federation's" main rival is the second most powerful drug cartel in Mexico; the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, with most battles between the two groups occurring in the Mexican regions of Baja California, Zacatecas (now spilling over into Jalisco), Sonora, Chiapas and as of recently; Colima,[75] over territory for drug trafficking routes. It was discovered as Mexican and San Diego officials were discussing the creation of a cross-border airport between Tijuana and Otay Mesa which would have undermined the drug tunneling operations in the area (see History of the Cross Border Xpress). The most well-known leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, The origins of the Sinaloa Cartel as well as its founding members have also been portrayed in the, The Sinaloa Cartel are the main antagonists of 2018 film, This page was last edited on 1 March 2023, at 20:19. The fallen man's hands are bound and his chest looks like it has been torn open.Shocking cellphone footagecaptured in broad daylightshows the . [84], Zambada also helped Amado Carrillo Fuentes expand the Jurez Cartel in the state of Chihuahua and helped incorporate some of the remnants of the Jurez Cartel into the Sinaloa Cartel after Carrillo's death in 1997. After the North American Free Trade Agreement the wealth of the Gulf Cartel skyrocketed and the cartel's leader Osiel Cardenas, along with his militaristic Z. Loya-Castro had become an official informant of the DEA in 2005 but was already providing vital information on rival cartels since the 1990s; such intel was instrumental to the takedown of the Tijuana Cartel, the Sinaloa cartel's main rival, as well as the death of Arturo Beltrn Leyva, who led a splinter group from the Sinaloa cartel. 1" of a city Guzmn has never set foot in. The Mexican press reported about the numerous cartel members housed in this prison. The cartel was founded in 1989 when Mexican smugglers Hctor Palma Salazar, Juan Jos Esparragoza Moreno and Joaqun Guzmn Loera splintered from the Guadalajara Cartel. The "super tunnels" were equipped with power, ventilation and rail tracks to allow the efficient movement of large loads of narcotics across the U.S.-Mexico border. The Sinaloa Cartel's central bond is blood. [65], According to a 2019 DEA report, it is estimated that each fentanyl pill costs only $1 to produce. This caused most of the organization's activities to be controlled and influenced directly from prison where the gang continued to recruit new members. The country's overcrowded prison system and the COVID-19 pandemic has apparently dominated much of the government's attention and focus recently, thus allowing the gang to more easily grow and consolidate power. In 2019 he was found guilty on various charges, including drug trafficking. He also claimed that the Sinaloa Cartel had bribed the military. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. The Milenio (Michoacn), Jalisco (Guadalajara), Sonora (Sonora), and Colima cartels were now branches of the Sinaloa Cartel. [147], Before his arrest, Vicente Zambada Niebla ("El Vicentillo"), son of Ismael Zambada Garca ("El Mayo"), played a key role in the Sinaloa Cartel. Their leaders included Rafael Caro Quintero, Miguel ngel Flix Gallardo and Ernesto Fonseca Carrillo. Throughout much of the 1990s, Ismael Zambada was also the only responsible for the cartel's mass growth and expansion while Guzmn and Palma were incarcerated. Guzmn is serving a life sentence in a US prison, but the Sinaloa cartel appears to be thriving. Footage uploaded by The Jalisco New Generation . Battles between the Sinoloa and Los Zetas cartels have left a bloody legacy in the streets of Nuevo Leon. -2012), which was continued by Enrique Pea Nieto until 2018, the relatively fledgling JNGC was busy taking over its enemies' turf. [187], American actor Sean Penn heard about the connection with Ms. del Castillo through a mutual acquaintance, and asked if he might come along to do an interview. [25] The geographic presence of Mexican cartels in Colombia seems to directly coincide with areas where coca crops are more abundant or with strategic narcotrafficking corridors: the Pacific coast of Nario, Catatumbo, Bajo Cauca in Antioquia, Norte del Cauca, and Magdalena.[25]. The Sinaloa Cartel used to be known as La Alianza de Sangre ("Blood Alliance"). Since then, there has been an internal power struggle between Ismael Zambada Garcia, alias "El Mayo," and El Chapo's sons, known as "Los Chapitos." Our work is costly and high risk. Working closely with the Honduran Juan Ramon Matta Ballesteros, the men came into contact with Colombia's Medelln Cartel. It was a telling day to bestow the measure of dishonor, a nod to the . Canadians in Mexico's northwest are being advised to take extra care amid an outbreak of violence following the arrest of Sinaloa drug cartel leader Ovidio Guzman, a son of jailed kingpin Joaquin . The Tucson and Phoenix, Arizona metropolitan areas are major trans-shipment and distribution points for the cartel in the US. [citation needed] Another source in the story was the U.S. trial of Manuel Fierro-Mendez, an ex-Juarez police captain who admitted to working for the Sinaloa Cartel. During the leadership of Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn and Ismael Zambada Garca, the multi-billion dollar international drug trafficking empire supposedly controlled at least 91% of the world's heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, and marijuana trade, regularly exporting multi-ton shipments of narcotics to the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia. By around the year 2000, Zambada became recognized as one of the biggest and most powerful drug lords in Mexico, having built strong distribution networks from Colombia to the United States. El Chapo and his partner, Hctor Luis Palma Salazar, remained in the Sinaloa area. [157] The presence of the cartel in the Philippines has worsened the ongoing war between drug lords, drug cartels and the government in that country. [93], In May 2009, the U.S. National Public Radio (NPR) aired multiple reports alleging that the Mexican federal police and military were working in collusion with the Sinaloa Cartel. [citation needed] Other shipments of South American cocaine are believed to originate from Cali and Medelln drug-trafficking groups in Colombia, from which the Sinaloa Cartel handles transportation across the U.S. border to distribution cells in Arizona, California, Illinois, Texas, New York City, and Washington state. April 30, 2021 3:06 PM PT. However, Zambada also used this conflict to his advantage since the Mexican government began to crackdown primarily on the Tijuana Cartel, Mayo used this weakening of his rivals as an opportunity for Sinaloa to step up in the trafficking world. [178] The BBC also reported on Vicente Zambada Niebla's claims of immunity from prosecution under a deal between the Mexican and US governments and his claims that the Sinaloa Cartel's leaders had provided US federal agents with information about rival Mexican drug gangs. With unregulated trucking and warehouse operations, the former Ejido Tampico became a major distribution point for narcotics being moved into the United States. Possibly fearing extradition to the United States, Guzmn escaped from prison in 2001. In the late 2000s and early 2010s, the Sinaloa Cartel and Gulf Cartel were traditionally considered allies but as of 2021, this alliance has reportedly fizzled out as the two groups now battle each other in the state of Zacatecas with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel now siding with the Gulf to fight against Sinaloa. Sinaloa Cartel. [98] However, during the second wave of America's opioid epidemic in the mid-2010s, which was driven largely by heroin; the prevalence and trafficking of fentanyl began to increase exponentially leading to the third wave and eventually turning into the deadliest drug epidemic in U.S. The cartel was founded in Mexico's Sinaloa state and now operates in 17 Mexican states, and by some estimates, in as many as 50 countries. [108][65] And despite their fierce rivalry, the Jalisco and Sinaloa cartels are reportedly sourcing precursor chemicals from the very same suppliers to produce fentanyl. The western Mexican state of Sinaloa is home to the country's most powerful and bloody drug cartel. [74], At the time of his arrest on 5 January 2023, El Chapo son Ovidio Guzmn was believed to be the leader of the cartel's Chapitos faction. Purportedly, a larger percentage of Mexican methamphetamine is now made from entirely synthetic precursors instead of the natural compound ephedrine. In mid-2015, members of the group . In recent years, the Sinaloa Cartel has become embroiled in a series of violent turf wars. [59][60], According to the National Drug Intelligence Center and other sources, within the U.S. the Sinaloa Cartel is primarily involved in the distribution of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, fentanyl, cannabis and MDMA. El Mayo was also reportedly the one who sent a private helicopter for El Chapo after he escaped Puente Grande prison in 2001. In 2016, authorities arrested Clara Elena Laborn, a former beauty queen from Sonora state who had married Hctor Beltrn Leyva, El Chapo's former partner in the Sinaloa cartel. Investigators are seeking a Tijuana businessman who owned the parcel", "DEA Couldn't Verify Tips on Drug Tunnel", "DRUG TUNNELS ALONG THE U.S.-MEXICO BORDER: HIGH COSTS, HIGH REWARDS", "Border tunnels: Complete list of those found", "Ejidatarios exigen pago justo por tierra expropiada en BC- El aeropuerto internacional de Tijuana ocupa la superficie", "DEA/ICE Uncover "Massive" Cross-Border Drug Tunnel Cement lined passage thought to link warehouses in Tijuana and Otay Mesa", "2,400-foot tunnel 'beats them all' -Builders of passage were well-funded, investigators say", "Major cross-border drug tunnel discovered south of San Diego", "Quitan tneles y droga a la mafia en BC-Decomisan 40 toneladas de marihuana", "Raid on U.S.-Mexico drug tunnel: 22 arrests, at least 12 tons of pot seized", "Hallan Otro Narcotunel Cerca del Aeropuerto", "Second Major Cross-Border Drug Tunnel Discovered South of San Diego This Month- Investigators seize 32 tons of marijuana, arrest 6 suspects", "Elaborate drug tunnel yields record pot seizure- More than 32 tons recovered in the United States and Mexico", "El tnel de Mxico a EU para transportar droga tena un elevador y rieles", "Drug lord 'El Chapo' extradited to the U.S.", "Mexican authorities busted 2 more cross-border tunnels possibly built by the Sinaloa cartel", "Sophisticated drug cartel tunnel from San Diego to Mexico found", "Woman linked to cartel kingpin 'El Chapo' arrested at San Diego border, charged in drug conspiracy", "HSBC money-laundering scandal casts a cloud over Lord Green, the trade minister", "U.S. Says Threat of Mexican Drug Cartels Approaching 'Crisis Proportions', "Treasury Designates Sinaloa Cartel Plaza Bosses", "HSBC became bank to drug cartels, pays big for lapses", "Sinaloa Cartel Bought Narco Plane Via HSBC Bank", "Forget The Drug Dealers And Iran, HSBC Is Having A Great Year", "Chicago's new Public Enemy No. In 1989, the Sinaloa Cartel dug its first drug tunnel between a house in Agua Prieta, Sonora to a warehouse located in Douglas, Arizona. On April 17, 2012, 14 men, likely Los Zetas members, were found in a minivan, chopped to pieces, allegedly by the Jalisco New Generation cartel, part of the Sinaloa group.In an apparent retaliation, 23 bodies were discovered a few weeks later. However, the days of big cartels in Mexico may be numbered. [71][72] Various sources alleged that internal conflicts for the cartel's total leadership had broken out between the Guzmn and Zambada factions of the organization, however newer sources as of November 2022 have claimed that these two sides of the cartel have recently reconciled their differences and are planning to work together to take on the Jalisco Cartel. In 2014 Guzmn was apprehended in Mazatln, Sinaloa, Mexico, but the following year he escaped from prison through a tunnel. The 300 feet (91m) tunnel was discovered in May 1990. This growing of the organization as well as the killing of Rasquia and the increasing importance of Ecuador in the illegal cocaine trade has given way to the recent crime waves in the region. The cartel's current leader, Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn, is public enemy number one in both Mexico and the United States. The article was picked up by, Our coverage of the arrest of Chapitos co-founder Ovidio Guzmn Lpez in Mexico has received worldwide attention.In the UK, outlets includingThe IndependentandBBC. This has predictably resulted in a surge of accidental overdose deaths in the U.S.[65][66][67] Additionally, the city of San Diego in Southern California has reportedly now become America's epicenter for fentanyl trafficking according to some federal officials, as reported by local news. [84] Following the discovery of a tunnel system used to smuggle drugs across the Mexican/US border, the group has also been associated with such means of trafficking.[9][86]. The Sinaloa organization also now participates directly in coca cultivation and production in Colombia. Mexico's Sinaloa and Jalisco Cartels: Competing or Collaborating? . He is considered to be the first generation of major Mexican drug smugglers of marijuana who marked the birth of large-scale Mexican drug trafficking. [179] In the same documentary it is shown that the US Justice Department invoked national security reasons to prevent Humberto Loya Castro, the lawyer of the Sinaloa Syndicate, from being summoned as a witness to the trial against Vicente Zambada Niebla. Re: Sinaloa Cartel has Infiltrated Arizona Government- Kari Lake Victory Stolen. Powerful figures in the Guadalajara organization, the two men became leaders in the Sinaloa cartel. As the country's criminal landscape continues to grow more fragmented, it's unclear if and how traditional cartels will be forced to adapt. 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