Mexican officials reported the grim discovery of 20 bodies in a city ravaged by cartel violence, including five decapitated corpses, on Monday.
Among the casualties, four decapitated bodies were found hanging from a bridge on a highway leading from the city, with the heads discovered nearby in plastic bags. This information was shared by authorities, as noted by a news agency.
On the same day, authorities also uncovered 16 additional bodies inside a white van parked along that highway. Some of these victims bore gunshot wounds; one had also suffered decapitation. Alongside the bodies, authorities found notes attributed to a cartel group, though the specifics of the notes were not disclosed right away.
Culiacan, home to about a million people, is the capital of Sinaloa, a region characterized by violent disputes between rival drug trafficking factions of the Sinaloa Cartel, specifically known as Roschapitos and Ramaisa.
Mexican authorities condemned these brutal acts, yet locals expressed skepticism about the government’s ability to control the violence effectively.
In a statement, Sinaloa government spokesperson Feliciano Castro mentioned that both military and police are actively working together to restore peace in the region.
Recently, the U.S. placed sanctions on the faction known as Los Chapitos, labeling them a specially designated global terrorist group. The U.S. Treasury Department indicated that this group is deeply involved in fentanyl production and human trafficking.
The Treasury Department described Los Chapitos as a highly violent faction within the Sinaloa cartel, primarily responsible for drug trafficking to the U.S. They framed these actions as part of an effort to combat the influential drug cartels and their violent factions.
Additionally, members associated with the Sinaloa cartel were implicated in the murder of U.S. Marine veteran Nicholas Quetz in Mexico last year.
The Sinaloa State Attorney General’s Office has yet to respond to inquiries regarding this situation.
