Turf wars between rival factions of the Sinaloa Cartel have left dozens of militants and innocent bystanders dead, led to dozens of kidnappings and spread fear among local residents.
Several major cities in Mexico's Sinaloa state have become ghost towns as local residents seek to avoid being caught in the crossfire. Despite the intense violence, the Mexican government continues to downplay the severity of the fighting.
Violence erupted again last week when armed groups loyal to the sons of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, known as Los Chapitos, clashed with armed groups loyal to the sons of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada. The fighting followed weeks of tensions as both sides stepped up their military forces following El Mayo's arrest on July 25.
After five days of fighting, from September 9 to 13, the Sinaloa state attorney general's office confirmed 20 murders, 28 kidnappings and 37 carjackings. These figures continued to rise as the violence continued over the weekend. Report by El Sol de MexicoBy Sunday, 11 more murders had occurred, including two women who appeared to have been innocent bystanders.
As Breitbart Texas reports, El Mayo had been called to a meeting with one of El Chapo's sons, his godson Joaquín Guzmán López, and several high-ranking politicians. But when he arrived, Guzmán and his armed men grabbed him and put him on a plane from Sinaloa to a private airport near El Paso, Texas, where U.S. authorities were waiting. The betrayal led to the split of Mexico's most powerful crime organization, the Sinaloa Cartel.
During the violence, Sinaloa Governor Ruben Rocha Moya was allegedly targeted, according to Mexico's Processor Reported Leaked cartel audio has alleged that Rocha Moya sided with Los Chapitos. At the time of El Mayo's arrest, Rocha Moya, an ally of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, was rumored to have been attending drug lord meetings. The Mexican government denied his involvement, saying he was out of the country at the time.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist at Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas' Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. Twitter and FacebookContact details: email address.
Brandon Darby is Managing Director and Editor in Chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas' Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and other senior Breitbart executives. Twitter and FacebookContact details: email address.
