Leaders of the Sinaloa cartel are allowing members to fire on U.S. personnel after its co-founder was arrested in July, according to an internal memo, leading Border Patrol agents in West Texas to attack the cartel. They were warned that they could be shot.
Cartels have historically refrained from violent confrontations with U.S.-based law enforcement for fear of an insurmountable backlash. However, the arrest on July 25 of co-founders Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada and Joaquín Guzmán López, son of Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzman, These beliefs loosened among younger members.
An internal memo obtained by NewsNation, warning of new mass shooting threats, was sent to federal employees along the El Paso, Texas area. This comes after a contractor working at a ranch in Eagle Pass, Texas, reported shots fired through the border fence on October 15th.
“They no longer fear anyone, especially U.S. law enforcement,” former Homeland Security Investigations official Victor Avila told the outlet.
“They certainly have the resources and capabilities and will use them against us.”
Last year, under El Chapo’s rule, the Sinaloa Cartel banned the production of fentanyl, imposing harsh death penalties. The order came from Zambada’s sons, who were arrested in July on suspicion of betraying him and forcing him onto a plane to the United States.
As rifts in the cartel’s leadership continue, internal conflicts between factions only intensify. Violence continues in Mexico’s Sinaloa state, leaving more than 190 people dead.
The cartel has reportedly imposed a blockade across Culiacan, the largest city in Sinaloa state, where it is based. At the checkpoint, the driver is held at gunpoint while cartel members search his cell phone.
Those associated with rival cartels are often injured or killed. Anyone who texts the wrong phrase or sends a photo of someone they shouldn’t be subject to similar penalties.
In September, cartel fighters kidnapped a Culiacan crime reporter along with two of his friends after stopping his car and searching his cellphone.
David Martinez, a 20-year-old journalist, was released hours later, but his two friends were bludgeoned to death and their bodies dumped under a bridge.
“Rather than predicting a quick end to this conflict, we observe that with each passing day, security, respect for human rights, productive activities, the economy, and socio-emotional health are increasingly disrupted,” the National Public Safety Commissioner said. The meeting stated. general coordinator Miguel Calderon told the Mazatlan Post.
“Little by little every day, people lived in fear, schools were empty, young people disappeared, and the streets were empty at night,” he added.
