Sinaloa Cartel
Founded in 1989 by Hector Palma, Joaquin El Chapo Guzman and Ismael El Mayo Zambada, today the Sinaloa Cartel is one of the most established transnational drug trafficking organizations. Although present in 15 of Mexico’s 32 states, the cartel has also expanded into the United States, Europe, Asia and South America.
As El Chapo is in prison, the cartel is plagued by internal battles between Zambada and three of El Chapo’s four sons, known as Los Chapitos.
The Drug Enforcement Administration views the Sinaloa cartel as one of the two leading criminal organizations, along with its rival, the new-generation Jalisco cartel.
The DEA said the Sinaloa cartel “exports and distributes wholesale amounts of fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana in the United States, maintaining distribution centers in various cities.”
How drugs are imported into the United States: “Illegal drugs distributed by the Sinaloa cartel are mainly imported into the United States through checkpoints located along the [south west border]. The cartel hires porters assigned to the ports of entry and controls the smuggling corridors in the Arizona and California regions of the United States.
A new generation of Jalisco cartel
The new-generation Jalisco cartel was once an ally of the Sinaloa cartel, as El Chapo depended on its firepower to fight Los Zetas.
Commanded by Nemesio El Mencho Osegera, the group separated from other cartels in the country, killing its enemies, and is now considered by the Mexican government to be the most dangerous group in the country.
The new-generation Jalisco cartel has spread to 23 of Mexico’s 32 states and is currently at war with at least ten cartels.
The group is known to have increased the strength of its members by purchasing military weapons and parts of the United States.
The new generation cartel in Jalisco, according to the DEA, specializes in “the production and distribution of large quantities of fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine and cocaine.”
How drugs are imported into the United States: “CJNG smuggles illicit drugs into the United States through access to various traffic corridors in northern Mexico along the SWB, including Tijuana, Juarez and Nuevo Laredo. The CJNG also has an impact on Mexico’s busiest port, the port of Manzanillo, and uses that influence to distribute large quantities of drugs.
Beltran-Leiva organization
For some time the Beltran-Leiva organization [BLO] was born from the Sinaloa cartel and became one of the most powerful cartels in Mexico, led by the Beltran Leiva brothers: Marcos Arturo, Carlos, Alfredo, Mario Alberto and Hector.
The Beltran-Leyva organization was embroiled in a deadly war with the Sinaloa cartel after the brothers accused their cousin El Chapo of being responsible for Alfredo’s arrest in January 2008. The brothers retaliated by plotting to assassinate El Chapo’s 22-year-old son. , Edgar Guzman, May 2008
Alfredo’s arrest sparked one of the worst periods in Mexico’s war on drugs, as the BLO’s new ally, the Juarez cartel, went to war with the Sinaloa cartel in Ciudad Juarez, a border town against Texas.
The BLO also expanded its power by facing the Gulf cartel, the Sinaloa cartel and the La Familia cartel in the northeastern border town of Reynosa.
Although the cartel remains viable today, the members of the organization eventually split into 11 factions.
How drugs are delivered to the United States: “BLO relies on its free alliances with larger cartels to access drug smuggling corridors along the [south west border]. ‘
Los Zetas and the Cartel del Noreste [Northeast Cartel]
The Los Zetas were formed by Mexican military deserters who formed an alliance with the Gulf Cartel in 1999 and based their operations in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, against Laredo, Texas. The group quickly came up with a name for themselves through their brutal killings. By 2010, Los Zetas had separated from the Gulf cartel.
At one point, Los Zetas dominated more cities in Mexico than the Sinaloa cartel, which they faced amid a threat from the Gulf cartel to eliminate it altogether.
Like some other Mexican cartels, Los Zetas saw some of its members split up and form their own groups.
The role of Los Zetas in the drug trade is imposed by one of its factions, Cartel del Noreste [Northeast Cartel]. Together, the criminal groups have set up their small but lucrative drug business in the border towns of Texas, Laredo and Eagle Pass, while controlling routes and lawns in the Mexican states of Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, Coahuila, San Luis Potosi and Zacatecas.
How drugs are imported into the United States: “Members smuggle most of their illicit drugs through [south west border] in the Laredo, Texas areas; Eagle Pass, Texas; and the Mexican states of Coahuila, Nuevo Leon and parts of Tamaulipas.
Guerrero Unidos
Operating in central Mexico, Guerrero Unidos separated from Beltrán-Leyva and formed an alliance with the new-generation Jalisco drug cartel in the United States and returned profits to Mexico.
The cartel is accused of being behind the disappearance in September 2014 of 43 students who were abducted by local police in Iguala, a town in the southern state of Guerrero.
How drugs are delivered to the United States: “The cartel has a working partnership with CJNG and uses the same transportation networks to move drug shipments to the United States and return drug revenues back to Mexico.”
Cartel in the Persian Gulf
The Gulf cartel is considered one of the oldest active criminal organizations in Mexico and is believed to have close ties to other gangs in Europe, West Africa, Asia, Central America, South America and the United States.
The organization started with the smuggling of alcohol in the United States during the era of the ban. It was not until 1980 that she immersed herself in the drug trade.
The DEA believes the Gulf cartel is working closely with the new-generation Jalisco cartel to deliver heroin and cocaine to the Texas border towns of McAllen and Brownsville.
How drugs are imported into the United States: “The Gulf cartel focuses its drug trafficking activities on heroin and cocaine, transporting goods to the United States near McAllen and Brownsville, Texas.”
Juarez Cartel and La Linea
The Juarez cartel established itself as one of the mayoral players in the drug trade in the 1970s. The company’s founder, Amado Carillo, was known as “El Señor de los Cielos” or “Lord of the Sky” because of the huge fleet of planes he owned to transport drugs, especially cocaine from Colombia and other Latin American countries.
The cartel was once an ally of El Chapo before the relationship fell apart after the famous drug lord refused to pay the Juarez cartel for the right to use its routes for drug smuggling.
The Juarez cartel relies on its armed La Linea wing to transport heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana between Ciudad Juarez and El Paso, Texas.
How drugs are delivered to the United States: The biggest territorial impact of “these cartels” is in the state of Chihuahua near [south west border]. This area has lucrative opportunities for smuggling between Ciudad Juarez and El Paso, Texas.
The Michoacana Family
La Familia Michoacana was once linked to the Gulf cartel before retiring on its own in 2006.
Between 2009 and 2010, the cartel offered the Mexican government plans to lay down arms while its home state of Michoacan received protection. However, President Felipe Calderon rejected their proposal, which led to a growing cartel involvement in the financing of political candidates.
Today, La Familia Michoacana is liaising with a new generation of Jalisco cartels and other criminal groups as part of its drug smuggling operation.
How drugs are brought into the United States: “The LFM has some ties to the CJNG and also works with other smaller groups to support the activities of the drug cartel.”
Los Rojos
Just like the Guerreros Unidos, Los Rojos was formed as an armed wing and separated from the Beltran-Leyva Organization.
According to a 2020 congressional report, Los Rojos “operates in Guerrero and relies heavily on kidnappings and extortion for money, as well as cocaine trafficking, although analysts dispute the extent of his involvement in the drug trade.”
How drugs are brought to the United States: “Los Rohos is involved in heroin trafficking”