Narco violence leaves 200 dead, 234 missing in Mexican state in grim month

By Alex Vasquez

A battle between warring factions of the Sinaloa Cartel has led to a surge in violence in the Mexican state over the last month, with over 200 people dead and 234 people missing, according to a local investigative outlet.

An analysis of hundreds of statements from the state prosecutor’s office, the Interior Ministry and local press by Revista Espejo show the deadly tally of the clashes between two criminal groups. The violence began in early September, after the capture of Sinaloa Cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada.

The lack of security underscores one of the greatest challenges facing President Claudia Sheinbaum, who took office Oct. 1. The president and her Security Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch announced the government’s security plan on Tuesday, which looks to create an intelligence unit to address high-crime states and reduce the nearly 200,000 homicides that occurred during the prior administration. 

The proposal also seeks to address the root causes of crime, consolidating the role of Mexico’s National Guard in public security and improving coordination between states and the national government. Sheinbaum cautioned Oct. 8 that homicides in Sinaloa are “not going to be solved in one day.” 

Sinaloa clashes

Drug traffickers loyal to Zambada are feuding with followers of the so-called Chapitos, the name given to the four sons of imprisoned kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, according to local media. 

Almost half of those gone missing were found, some dead, Revista Espejo reported. Victims have been found in at least nine municipalities, including those with signs of burns, mutilation and torture, according to the local report. 

Garcia Harfuch, Sheinbaum’s Defense Minister Ricardo Trevilla and dozens of military personnel and army vehicles and helicopters traveled to Culiacan, the state capital, on Tuesday to try to control the crisis. Of the total of deaths so far, 128 were reported in Culiacan, according to Revista Espejo’s investigation.

Since the clashes began in Sinaloa, several trailer trucks and buses have been seized by criminal groups and burnt in various parts of Culiacan and surrounding highways. Earlier Friday, five other people were killed in Culiacan, while robberies of businesses and acts of vandalism against buildings such as banks were reported in different parts of the city, according to local newspaper Reforma.


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