17. Chapo was famously recaptured, then escaped from prison, then recaptured in Mexico once again in 2016, only adding to his criminal legend. According to reports at the time, it was responsible for the majority of illegal drugsnotably marijuana, cocaine, heroin, and methamphetaminesthat were smuggled from Mexico into its northern neighbour, and in 2015 U.S. officials claimed that Sinaloa controlled the drug markets in almost every state. [82][83][85][1], During this time, Sinaloa was considered to be at a major disadvantage since they were forced to move much of their drug product through the Tijuana corridor, which often put them directly into conflict with the Arellanos. However, after the cartel was involved in the 1985 torture and murder of a U.S. drug enforcement agent, U.S. and Mexican forces cracked down on the syndicate, and by the end of the decade it had broken into various groups, one of which was based in Sinaloa. Its origins can be traced to the Guadalajara cartel, which was one of Mexico's largest crime organizations in the early 1980s. Another close associate, Javier Torres Flix, was arrested and extradited to the U.S. in December 2006. He was arrested by the Mexican Army on 18 March 2009, and extradited on 18 February 2010, to Chicago to face federal charges. Mexican security forces captured on Thursday drug cartel leader Ovidio Guzman, a son of jailed kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, triggering a wave of violence ahead of a visit by U.S. President . Territory: The west, mainly the Tierra Caliente region. A son of Sinaloa cartel kingpin Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada pleaded guilty in San Diego federal court Friday to being a leader in the global drug . [95], In current times, it is believed that while Guzmn's relatives and friends scramble for marginal leadership positions in the organization, the real top leader is still Ismael Zambada whom allegedly mediates power between them and allows them an umbrella of the organization to work under his reign with seemingly, relative autonomy. He was extradited to the United States the following year. Mexican drug cartel leader Ovidio Guzman, a son of jailed kingpin Joaquin " El Chapo " Guzman, was arrested, unleashing a violent backlash by gang gunmen on Thursday that shut the airport in . [47] Local state and government crackdowns on these farms however has pushed much of the opioid market in the direction of synthetics like fentanyl which can be made far more covertly. While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. [69], Although the Sinaloa Cartel has traditionally grown and cultivated marijuana locally in the original "Golden Triangle" region of Mexico, the cartel as well as other Mexican cartels have, in recent times, set up large marijuana growing operations in the remote forests and deserts of California where they reportedly have stolen millions of gallons of water for these illegal grows. Investigators identified El Postino as a potential front for the Sinaloa cartel in 2016. Throughout much of the 1990s, Ismael Zambada was also the only responsible for the cartel's mass growth and expansion while Guzmn and Palma were incarcerated. The most extensive database on organized crime in the Americas. 1. "This is a city filled with drug lords," a Mexican journalist said. The remaining factions established bases in various parts of Mexico. [170] Another report detailed numerous indications of corruption and influence that the cartel has within the Mexican government. [178] The BBC also reported on Vicente Zambada Niebla's claims of immunity from prosecution under a deal between the Mexican and US governments and his claims that the Sinaloa Cartel's leaders had provided US federal agents with information about rival Mexican drug gangs. As the Mexican government intensified its efforts to arrest suspected drug lords, he eluded capture, but other cartel leaders were imprisoned, weakening organizations and giving rise to splinter groups. [121][122] Following the discovery by U.S. Customs and Mexican Federal Police, the Sinaloa Cartel began to focus their smuggling operations towards Tijuana and Otay Mesa, San Diego where it acquired a warehouse in 1992. Shannon, Elaine (1988). The region is a major producer of Mexican opium and marijuana. This division of the organization in the late 1980s led to the cartel essentially being made up of several smaller cartels who controlled their own territories and trafficking corridors with their own bosses. In 1989, the Sinaloa Cartel dug its first drug tunnel between a house in Agua Prieta, Sonora to a warehouse located in Douglas, Arizona. Funky town of course. During the leadership of Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn and Ismael Zambada Garca, the multi-billion dollar international drug trafficking empire supposedly controlled at least 91% of the world's heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine, and marijuana trade, regularly exporting multi-ton shipments of narcotics to the United States, Canada, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Australia. [69], As of 2023, the Sinaloa Cartel remains Mexico's most dominant drug cartel. A 2020 report prepared by the Congressional Research Service says the cartel originated in . This would make it less likely the whole organization would be brought down all at once. Corrections? [59][60], According to the National Drug Intelligence Center and other sources, within the U.S. the Sinaloa Cartel is primarily involved in the distribution of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, fentanyl, cannabis and MDMA. The resulting products are shipped to the United States and many South American countries. They have been known to frequently use American citizens as mules, many of whom have drugs stuffed in passenger vehicles or tractor-trailers. After the North American Free Trade Agreement the wealth of the Gulf Cartel skyrocketed and the cartel's leader Osiel Cardenas, along with his militaristic Z. He is considered to be the first generation of major Mexican drug smugglers of marijuana who marked the birth of large-scale Mexican drug trafficking. The shipments were mostly bought from the Sinaloa Cartel and at times from the Beltrn-Leyva Cartel, and it is assumed that both cartels threatened the Flores crew with violence if they bought from other rival drug organizations. The Sinaloa Cartel's central bond is blood. The majority of high-value hard drugs are smuggled into the U.S. through legal ports of entry (border crossings) according to the DEA and various sources. Their leaders included Rafael Caro Quintero, Miguel ngel Flix Gallardo and Ernesto Fonseca Carrillo. The CJNG emerged out of the Sinaloa Cartel in 2010 after the death of former Sinaloa Cartel capo Ignacio Coronel, alias Nacho. Since, the CJNG has expanded rapidly across the country, involving itself in a host of criminal activities, including international drug trafficking, most recently involving synthetic drugs and powerful opioids like fentanyl, which the Sinaloa Cartel is also involved in the trafficking of. The Sinaloa Cartel's tentacles stretch from New York City to Buenos Aires and almost every major city in between. Allies and Enemies. [citation needed]. For some time it was allied with El Chapo's Sinaloa, but since his capture his Sinaloa cartel has been usurped by New Generation as the most powerful in Mexico. The report also alleged, with support from an anthropologist who studies drug trafficking, that data on the low arrest rate of Sinaloa Cartel members (compared to other groups) was evidence of favoritism on the part of the authorities. Sinaloa notably gained territory from both the Tijuana and Jurez cartels, solidifying its position as one of the worlds most-powerful drug syndicates. The Father and son video is pretty fucked up.The reaction of the kid seeing his Dad (or whoever it is in relation to him) decapitated is so hard to watch. On 8 November 1992, Palma struck out against the Tijuana Cartel at a disco club in Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, where eight Tijuana Cartel members were killed in the shootout, the Arellano-Flix brothers successfully escaping from the location with the assistance of David Barron Corona, a member of the Logan Heights Gang. [47] He filed a guilty plea agreement and agreed to cooperate with the government on 8 November 2018.[148]. . It is based in the Pacific coast state of Sinaloa. He is considered to have been one of the most powerful . When the jet landed at the Tijuana airport, both police and military units failed to cordon off the aircraft and the gunmen escaped. Amy Tikkanen is the general corrections manager, handling a wide range of topics that include Hollywood, politics, books, and anything related to the. The cartel was founded in 1989 when Mexican smugglers Hctor Palma Salazar, Juan Jos Esparragoza Moreno and Joaqun Guzmn Loera splintered from the Guadalajara Cartel. The CJNG emerged out of the Sinaloa Cartel in 2010 after the death of former Sinaloa Cartel capo Ignacio Coronel, alias Nacho. Since, the CJNG has, across the country, involving itself in a host of criminal activities, including international drug trafficking, most recently involving synthetic drugs and powerful opioids like fentanyl, which the Sinaloa Cartel is, Even with El Chapo in jail for life, the Sinaloa Cartel has remained one of Mexico's. "[88] When Hctor Luis Palma Salazar was arrested on 23 June 1995, by the Mexican Army, his partner Joaqun Guzmn Loera took leadership of the cartel. The Sinaloa Cartel is a Mexican drug cartel operating out of Sinaloa, Mexico. As shown by image 3 Drug Trafficking Tunnel, in 2006 the unpermitted development allowed the building of a 2,400-foot (730-meter) drug "super tunnel" originating from the former Ejido Tampico and adjacent to the Tijuana airport's runway. [180][181][182] The cardinal arrived at the airport in a white Mercury Grand Marquis town car, known to be popular amongst drug barons. His recapture and extradition has sparked a wave of violence due to internal power struggles within the Sinaloa Cartel and efforts from other criminal groups to expand their operations in the capos absence. Jess Alfredo Salazar Ramrez was arrested on 1 November 2012, in the municipality of Huixquilucan, by military personnel working with the Mexican Attorney General's office (PGR).[167]. [45], In retaliation, the Tijuana Cartel attempted to set up Guzmn at Guadalajara airport on 24 May 1993. [61] It is currently the majority supplier of illicit fentanyl to North America, with most, if not all of the cartel's heroin now also being mixed with fentanyl or related chemical analogues to increase the heroin's potency in a more cost-effective manner. One of the first to traffic marijuana in bulk was Pedro Aviles, who later brought his friend's son, Joaqun Guzmn Loera, alias "El Chapo," into the business. YouTube. Since 2018, Eduardo Giralt Brun has been trying to understand the psyche of the foot soldiers in the criminal group. Divisions participating in Project Wave Breaker are credited with 85% of all synthetic opioids seized by the DEA in 2020. At the time, the power of the Colombian cartels was declining, partly because of the deaths of various drug lords, notably Pablo Escobar (died 1993), and the U.S. crackdown on drug trafficking in the Caribbean, then the preferred route for transporting drugs into the United States. . [103][104] The CDS as well as other large Mexican cartels have also set up major marijuana growing operations in the remote forests and deserts of California. However, the days of big cartels in Mexico may be numbered. The church hierarchy originally believed Posadas was targeted as revenge for his strong stance against the drug trade. The cartel emerged in 2010, first as an ally of the Sinaloa cartel of Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn, and then, by 2013, as an independent organization trafficking drugs through some of Mexico . [164], On 11 May 2010, Alfonso Gutirrez Loera, cousin of Joaqun Guzmn Loera, and 5 other drug traffickers were arrested after a shootout with Federal Police officers in Culiacan, Sinaloa. Horrifying moment Mexican drug cartel thugs pull mourners from a wake, line them up against the wall and shoot them - killing up to 17. LOS ZETAS CARTEL Founded: 1999 Originally part of: Gulf Cartel Allies: Beltrn-Leyva Cartel, Jurez Cartel, Tijuana Cartel Enemies: Sinaloa Cartel, Gulf Cartel, La Familia Cartel PRESENCE Controls over 11 states, the Zetas have the largest territory in Mexico Also, Zetas have a presence in the U.S.A. & Guatemala WANTED "EL LAZCA" OR . [citation needed] The organization has also been known to utilize narcosubmarines, boats, ships, trains, helicopters, and cargo planes for their smuggling operations. In an attempt to resolve the dispute and remove the ejidatarios from the privatized Tijuana airport, the Mexican government established a value on the expropriated 320 hectares (790 acres) at $1.2million pesos ($125,560 U.S. dollars in 1999) while the ejidatarios of the former Ejido Tampico taking into account the increase in property values from 1970 to 1999 and the privatization of the Tijuana airport established a commercial value on their lost land at $2.8billion pesos ($294million U.S. dollars). The money it generates has left its imprint on the relationships between narcos and young women . [25] The cartel however also appears to still have major methamphetamine operations in cities throughout the U.S., such as in San Diego and Atlanta. [54][55][47] It is currently headed by Ismael Zambada Garca and is based in the city of Culiacn, Sinaloa,[56] with operations in many world regions but primarily in the Mexican states of Sinaloa, Baja California, Durango, Sonora, and Chihuahua. In contrast, El Mayo's sons have either all been arrested and jailed in the United States or seem to be lying low. "El Mueco" is considered to be one of the most important lieutenants of Joaqun Guzmn Loera, evident from his control of the planting, production, and trafficking of drugs in Sonora and in the mountains of Chihuahua, which were sent predominantly to the US. This has predictably resulted in a surge of accidental overdose deaths in the U.S.[65][66][67] Additionally, the city of San Diego in Southern California has reportedly now become America's epicenter for fentanyl trafficking according to some federal officials, as reported by local news. The characteristics of the system are strategies . In 2020, divisions between Los Chapitos and El Mayo appeared to worsen, with a number of deadly clashes reported between their supporters as well as the mysterious assassination of a former top Sinaloa Cartel hitman. The reports also demonstrated the cartels possess the ability to establish operations in previously unknown areas, such as Central America and South America, even as far south as Peru, Paraguay and Argentina. Sinaloa cartel, international crime organization that is among the most-powerful drug-trafficking syndicates in the world. [65] Despite trafficking various types of illicit substances, the cartel's operations seem to mostly favor the trade of cocaine and opioids, particularly in a distribution hub like Chicago, where demand for methamphetamine is relatively low. News outlets in Mexico are reporting contradictory stories about whether the Jalisco and Sinaloa Cartels are friends, enemies or something in between. Drug enforcement experts estimate, conservatively, that the cartel's annual revenues exceed $3 billion: more than those of the . Preserving the ongoing viability of the Sinaloa Cartel by kidnaping, torturing and murdering those determined to be enemies of the Sinaloa Cartel, disloyal to the Sinaloa Cartel, or those who lose . El Chapo, El Azul and El Mayo all maintained their own separate but cooperating organizations, while the cartel's operations in foreign countries, and even within Mexico, are often outsourced to local partners. After declaring war on their rivals including old masters in El Chapo's Sinaloa Cartel the cartel began a hostile takeover of Mexico's drug industry. To accomplish this task he used every means available: Boeing 747 cargo aircraft, narco submarines, container ships, go-fast boats, fishing vessels, buses, rail cars, tractor-trailers and automobiles. The Sinaloa cartel was once led by the notorious drug boss known as Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn. Check the Creative Commons website for more details of how to share our work, and please send us an email if you use an article. Taco Star was noted as suspicious due to payments of more than $200,000 to El Potosino. El Chapo fled to Guatemala where he was arrested two weeks later. A cartel leader and hitman fond of videotaping torture sessions and decapitating likely dozens of enemies has gone missing from a federal prison in Florida, where he was serving a 49-year sentence. They were, in essence, a small group of farming families that lived in rural parts of the state. The cartel's current leader, Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn, is public enemy number one in both Mexico and the United States. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. Aviles was killed in a shootout with police in 1978. [91] On 29 July 2010, Ignacio Coronel was killed in a shootout with the Mexican military in Zapopan, Jalisco. Mayo's traditional major distribution hubs were allegedly in Chicago, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Atlanta and Denver. Members of the Zetas being presented in Mexico City by the navy - they were alleged of being involved in the San Fernando massacre Credit: Associated Press. The Drug Enforcement Administration considers them to be "the biggest, most powerful drug cartel of all time". The body of Jose Rodrigo Arechiga Gamboa, a.k.a. It is based in Culiacn, Sinaloa state, Mexico. In recent times, the cartel has also moved further away from smuggling MDMA and even heroin, while increasing smuggling of cocaine, fentanyl and methamphetamine. Although he was arrested and sentenced to more than 20 years in prison in 1993, he continued to be a key figure in the cartel, and, according to various reports, he gained full control of the organization in 1995. The Sinaloa Cartel (Spanish: Crtel de Sinaloa), also known as the CDS, the Guzmn-Zambada Organization, the Pacific Cartel, the Federation and the Blood Alliance, is a large, international organized crime syndicate that specializes in illegal drug trafficking and money laundering. [113] In the coastal city of Mazatln, it reportedly takes as little as eight days for the precursor chemicals to move from a Pacific Ocean delivery to hidden cartel labs, then north across the U.S. With unregulated trucking and warehouse operations, the former Ejido Tampico became a major distribution point for narcotics being moved into the United States. Enemies: Gulf Cartel, Sinaloa Cartel. The formation of El Mencho's new cartel was announced to the world in a violent public display with grisly spectacles eventually becoming the group's trademark. Purportedly, a larger percentage of Mexican methamphetamine is now made from entirely synthetic precursors instead of the natural compound ephedrine. Matta Ballesteros lived part-time in Colombia, where he operated as the main intermediary between Mexican and Colombian traffickers, particularly the Medelln and Guadalajara Cartels. Given that El Chapo's conviction in the United States in 2019 landed him in prison for the rest of his life, El Mayo, the only remaining member from the Sinaloa Cartel's old guard, and El Chapo's sons, Joaqun Guzmn Lpez, Ovidio Guzmn Lpez, Ivn Archivaldo and Jess Alfredo, who are also known collectively as "Los Chapitos," are now left to head the general direction of the cartel's operations while it retains its horizontal structure. A drug cartel in Mexico is forcing members into cannibalism after videos online have emerged which show gang members eating body parts of enemies. However, recently smaller gangs have begun to target the Choneros and the organization has also fallen subject to the phenomenon of infighting within the gang and its derivative groups. [129] As shown image 2 Ejido Tampico comparison between 2000 and 2006, the ejidatarios then proceeded to commercially develop the 79 hectares (200 acres) area at the Tijuana airport by leasing buildings and parcels to trucking and storage companies. [96][58] However, much of the marijuana that is now cultivated and dealt by the cartel is being illegally grown in remote areas of California within the U.S. Operatives of the cartel have reportedly claimed that their intention was the opposite of that and it was actually meant to distinguish them from real pharmaceuticals. We then verify, write and edit, providing the tools to generate real impact. [112] Front companies in Mexico can easily import the small quantities cartel groups need to be diverted for production by mixing them in with legal products or mislabeling them altogether. The battles between these organizations began almost immediately. 1 nemesis, the Sinaloa Cartel, dominates the majority supply of everything from methamphetamine and heroin to the devastating synthetic opioid fentanyl . As a result, more criminal, Despite the pandemics economic fallout being felt throughout the Riviera Maya, cartels have continued their extortion schemes in Mexico's popular, The United States and Mexico have officially entered a new phase of their partnership to tackle transnational organized crime groups. It was established in Mexico during the late 1980s as one of a various number of subordinate plazas" operating under a predecessor organization known as the Guadalajara Cartel. Authorities noted that Sinaloa, along with other cartels, had become increasingly involved in the distribution of fentanyl, which contributed to the growing opioid crisis in the United States. Much of which is also now supposedly the L-methamphetamine isomer (which has more side effects) instead of the more traditional and potent D-methamphetamine, or is now just a racemic mixture of both. This Is America's Enemies + Woke . [115] This has also subsequently led to the border city of San Diego reportedly becoming the epicenter for fentanyl trafficking in America due to its proximity to the border, according to local news reports. However, the days of big cartels in Mexico may be numbered. Sinaloa Cartel Enemies: Cali Cartel (CC) Natural Born Killers (NBK) Kings Over All (KOA) Callahan Crime Family (CCF) Back In Blood (BIB) _____ Sinaloa Cartel Sub gangs: None. [79], Miguel ngel Flix Gallardo, who co-founded the Guadalajara Cartel between 1978 and 1980, from then on; controlled much of Mexico's drug-trafficking corridors along the United States border throughout the 1980s, only to be rivaled by the Gulf Cartel which controlled some of eastern Mexico's drug trade. In 2012, the cartel emerged victorious from a bloody battle with the Juarez Cartel over control of Ciudad Juarez. Sinaloa cartel has two new enemies in Chihuahua. While the Sinaloa Cartel remains under the leadership of Zambada Garca, its local bosses have broad decision-making power, which makes it difficult to estimate how much of an overall toll this violence has had on the group. [157] The presence of the cartel in the Philippines has worsened the ongoing war between drug lords, drug cartels and the government in that country. Drug busts in DC area, 7 states linked to Sinaloa cartel; drugs, guns, $5.4 million seized. 1" of a city Guzmn has never set foot in. Cartel operatives say it's 'actually the opposite. Get a Britannica Premium subscription and gain access to exclusive content. the members of The Cartel Project mean to send a powerful message to enemies of the free press . They established the patterns that we see repeated today: movement of bulk shipments of cocaine via airplane and boat to Central America and Mexico, then by land routes into the United States. The corrupt cops allegedly had a deal that entitled them to half the value of any drug shipment taken from an opposing cartel thanks to their information. The upper hand in the conflict has ebbed and flowed throughout the regions but with the Zetas an increasingly fragmented force, the Sinaloa Cartel seems poised to cement its position as the dominant force in the Mexican underworld. 4 Nuevo Laredo Massacres. As the country's criminal landscape continues to grow more fragmented, it's unclear if and how traditional cartels will be forced to adapt. El Cartel de Sinaloa es considerada como una de las organizaciones criminales dedicadas al narcotrfico ms antiguas en Mxico: dnde opera y quines son sus lderes? After the breakaway of the Beltran Leyva Organization (BLO) in 2008, El Chapo became the most visible head of the Sinaloa Cartel, although he was joined at the top table by El Mayo and Juan Jose Esparragoza Moreno, alias "El Azul." Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions. The country's overcrowded prison system and the COVID-19 pandemic has apparently dominated much of the government's attention and focus recently, thus allowing the gang to more easily grow and consolidate power. Guzmn is serving a life sentence in a US prison, but the Sinaloa cartel appears to be thriving. Footage uploaded by The Jalisco New Generation . [citation needed] Other shipments of South American cocaine are believed to originate from Cali and Medelln drug-trafficking groups in Colombia, from which the Sinaloa Cartel handles transportation across the U.S. border to distribution cells in Arizona, California, Illinois, Texas, New York City, and Washington state. Like many other stories, that of the Sinaloa Cartel and its enemies in Jalisco went through friendship, betrayal and death. El Chapo maintained some control from prison, passing messages through his lawyers. For a long time, the cartel also benefited from the relative ease of cash transactions and money laundering through banks with presence both in the US and Mexico like HSBC. The Carrillo Fuentes family moved to Juarez. [25] The geographic presence of Mexican cartels in Colombia seems to directly coincide with areas where coca crops are more abundant or with strategic narcotrafficking corridors: the Pacific coast of Nario, Catatumbo, Bajo Cauca in Antioquia, Norte del Cauca, and Magdalena.[25]. It relies on eight "plaza" bosses, leaders of a specific geographic region along the corridor, to coordinate, direct, and support the flow of narcotics north into the United States. 1, a maximum-security prison in the State of Mexico, through a tunnel in his prison cell. same cartel runs Durango . [95] Under Zambada's leadership, the Sinaloa Cartel had been willing to negotiate potential leadership for the Caro Quintero brothers due to their histories as bosses in the predecessor organization. On 19 December 2013, the Federal Police of Mexico killed Gonzalo "El Macho Prieto" Inzunza in a gun battle in Puerto Penasco, Sonora. Many of its members are related by birth or by marriage. At that point his nephews, the Arellano Flix brothers, left and further solidified the organization which came to be known as the Tijuana Cartel, while the Sinaloa Cartel continued to be run by former lieutenants Hctor Luis Palma Salazar, Ismael Zambada Garca and Joaqun Guzmn Loera. They also announced the seizure of more than $59million in cash and numerous vehicles, planes, and boats. [159][160] El Buda served as the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel's drug trafficking activities and shipments from Central and South America. [citation needed], The Sinaloa Cartel was partially splintered in 2008 when the Beltrn-Leyva brothers broke apart from the cartel.[47]. The CJNG dropped flyers over a Mexican town to declare war on the Sinaloa Cartel and promised to "clean up" the region. [74], At the time of his arrest on 5 January 2023, El Chapo son Ovidio Guzmn was believed to be the leader of the cartel's Chapitos faction. By around the year 2000, Zambada became recognized as one of the biggest and most powerful drug lords in Mexico, having built strong distribution networks from Colombia to the United States. The Sinaloa cartel chief Joaqun "El Chapo" Guzmn was captured for the final time in January 2016. [47] In this region, black tar heroin has often been referred to as the black goat. "The Sinaloa Cartel demonstrated a tremendous ability to mobilize rapidly and take effective control of the city," says Raul Benitez, an expert on Latin America's . Nepomuceno Moreno was an activist who sought justice for the disappearance of his son and joined the Mexican Indignados Movement, led by the poet Javier Sicilia. An inside look at Mexico's Sinaloa cartel. [62][63][64] As of 2023[update], the Sinaloa Cartel is overall the most active drug cartel involved in smuggling illicit drugs into the United States and trafficking them throughout the country. It has successfully penetrated government and security forces wherever it operates. This eventually led to Ramn Arellano Flix killing two of Guzmn's associates thus leading to a full-fledged war between the two organizations. I am from durango, in the city meth is legal to use, even the merchants sell meth pipes on the street (no joke) but in some of the cities of the state, meth is illegal, and if you get busted consuming you get beat up, paying a fee, and getting your self in a rehab center, that is a 30 minute difference where meth is illegal and legal. We want to sustain Latin Americas largest organized crime database, but in order to do so, we need resources. [65], According to a 2019 DEA report, it is estimated that each fentanyl pill costs only $1 to produce. It has cells in more than 70 cities in the U.S. from Seattle to Miami . [25] Both the CDS and CJNG have also recently began to participate directly in cocaine production in Colombia, not only to buy, but also to invest in production directly through other criminal organizations.