Highlights
– The Beltran-Leyva Brothers violently split from the Sinaloa Federation in May 2008, ending a long time alliance with the Sinaloa Cartel
– Recent arrests continue to threaten the Sinaloa Cartel’s control over its territories
– Violence involving the Sinaloa Cartel is expected to continue in rival territories in the near-term, however, new military focus on Sinaloa will likely force the cartel back to its base territories in the mid to long-term
Background
Current cartel leaders Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Loera and Hector “El Guero” Palma began as hired guns for the then-Guadalajara Cartel under Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo in the early 1970s, but eventually split from Gallardo to start separate trafficking organizations. Guzman formed what is now known as the “Pacific,” “Guzman-Loera” or “Sinaloa Cartel.” Utilizing family connections, Palma began working with a Venezuelan trafficker named Rafael Enrique Clavel. In 1978, Palma was arrested in Arizona, where he was held until 1986.
After his release, Palma discovered that Clavel had killed his wife and two children, stolen US$7 million from his accounts and had returned to work for Miguel Gallardo in the then-Tijuana Cartel. Palma believed that Gallardo had hired Clavel to infiltrate his burgeoning organization and soon after, Palma joined in the leadership of the Sinaloa Cartel with Joaquin Guzman. Palma retaliated by murdering Clavel’s lawyer and three sons.
• This rivalry between Palma and Gallardo formed the basis of the current feud between the Tijuana Cartel and Sinaloa Cartel.
In 1993, Guzman was arrested and held in a high-security prison in Mexico and Palma lead the organization in his absence. In 2001, however, Guzman managed to escape the prison by bribing guards and has maintained leadership of the Sinaloa Cartel since that time. Since that time, the Sinaloa Cartel has consistently has continued to flourish, despite several feuds, increasing violence and logistics concerns. We foresee that the cartel will remain a formidable organized crime group in the mid to long-term.
The Federation
In the 1980s and 1990s, Guzman’s Sinaloa Cartel was considered by the United States (US) Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to be the largest drug trafficking organization in Mexico. It became known as the Sinaloa “Federation” for its widespread control of all territories east of Tijuana to Nuevo Laredo, and due to the conglomeration of alliances of the Beltran-Leyva Brothers of Sorora and brothers Amado and Vicente Carrillo Fuentes, leaders of the Juarez Cartel until Amado’s death in 1997, and Joaquin Guzman.
The Federation managed to retain much of its control and was even able to gain ground as the Mexican military began to increase targeting of cartel leaders in 2006, including such figureheads as Gulf Cartel leader Osiel Cardenas. However, at the end of 2007, a break between Guzman and Vicente Carrillo Fuentes caused a spike in violence in Juarez over control of its lucrative cocaine routes to the US. The violent split initiated a splintering effect in the Federation.
In mid-2007, speculation began to arise that the Beltran-Leyva Brothers were working with the Zetas, known hit men for the Gulf Cartel and rivals of the Federation. In January 2008, a top lieutenant in the Sinaloa Cartel, Alfredo Beltran Leyva, was arrested and taken into custody in Culican, Sinaloa. The eldest brother, Arturo Beltran Leyva, reportedly blamed Guzman for providing evidence to the police leading to his brother’s arrest. As a result, in May 2008, Joaquin Guzman’s son, Edgar, was shot to death in a shopping mall parking lot in Culican. Authorities claimed the Zetas were responsible for the retribution execution, most likely hired by the Beltran family.
• As feuds between the Beltran-Leyva Brothers and Guzman worsened, the alliance of the Federation permanently dissolved.
Current Situation
Although the Sinaloa Federation disintegrated in 2008, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman and Ismael Zambada Garcia, “El Mayo,” continue to operate the Sinaloa Cartel within the Mexican state of Sinaloa and have shown a growing presence in rival territories in recent months.
• In September 2008, over 60 people, mainly members of the Arellano Felix Organization (AFO), were killed in the city of Tijuana, where banners were hung all over the city which read “El Mayo and El Chapo are the ones trying to enter Tijuana.”
Since the initiation of President Felipe Calderon’s anti-drug trafficking campaign in December 2006, law enforcement and military forces have prioritized combating organized crime in Mexico and have focused primarily on Sinaloa rivals, such as the Gulf Cartel along the Mexico-Texas border, and the Tijuana Cartel along the Mexico-California border (Previous Report). Rival cartels have accused the president of providing special protection for the Sinaloa Cartel, and have increasingly targeted federal police in retribution for this lack of preferential treatment.
As a result of military campaigns seemingly avoiding targeting its operations, the Sinaloa Cartel has operated with relative impunity until recently.
• On October 20, 2008 Mexican police arrested 16 members of the Sinaloa cartel at the Mexico City International Airport. Among them was Jesus “The King” Zambada, brother to leader Ismael Zambada, and head of the Cartel’s operations in Central Mexico. Authorities have claimed the arrests as the most significant apprehensions of the Calderon administration.
Outlook
It is likely that Mexican troops and law enforcement officers will refocus their anti-drug trafficking operations in the Sinaloa region in the near-term, especially as the Tijuana Cartel has been significantly weakened and many of the main leaders in the Gulf Cartel have been arrested or killed in recent months. With this new military attention, and its rivals forging new territorial alliances, it is likely that the Sinaloa Cartel will experience some disintegration in the mid to long-term.
It is also likely that the revitalized security forces focus on the cartel will aid in the arrest of Mexico’s Most Wanted Man, Joaquin Guzman. There will likely be continued violence in areas such as Tijuana in the near-term, as the Sinaloa Cartel continues to battle for lucrative smuggling routes and increased operational capabilities.
