Bulletin From The Borderlands Flash Report
Sinaloa Cartel Arrest 1/6 - Expeditionary Intelligence Group
Bulletin From The Borderlands is a joint project between Lethal Minds and some of the most talented OSINT analysts and independent journalists working today. Our goal is to provide you with a clear, accurate, and informative view of the world, free from censorship or bias. The Bulletin will bring you the facts, our analysis, and our evidence. We hope you find our work helps you better understand the complicated and increasingly volatile world in which we live.
The following is a flash report. These reports will be released in future prior to longer form coverage in our bi weekly Bulletin. Our greater coverage of the arrest of Ovidio Guzman and the Sinaloa Cartel’s response will be available to our paid subscribers in the coming months.
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Ovidio “The Mouse” Guzman: Arrest
Earlier this week on Thursday, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman’s son Ovidio Guzman was arrested in the Sinaloa capital Culiacan. The arrest of the Sinaloa Cartel operator has resulted in widespread violence and fear across the nation. Social media reports have shown that most businesses in Sinaloa have closed as well as the burning of vehicles all along major highways in and out of the state. Additionally, many videos have surfaced of Sinaloa Cartel members setting up roadblocks on major roadways to ambush police and national security forces. Furthermore, the cartel has launched multiple attacks at airports within their home state resulting in the cancellation of over 100 flights and damaging multiple planes via gunfire including one that was preparing to take off. Many eyewitnesses within the state of Sinaloa have reported that since Ovidio’s arrest on Thursday at approximately 04:00 local time, the “gunfire and heavy fighting has not stopped.”
This is the second time Ovidio has been arrested by security forces, the first being three years ago resulting in similar amounts of violence that eventually led to the Mexican government essentially surrendering and releasing him. In response to Thursday’s arrest, it appears the cartel is taking the same approach, promising war against the state until Ovidio is released. In response to the arrest, Secretary of Defense Sandoval, stated that the arrest was made possible by a “pre-drawn operation” that has required six months of surveillance, adding that the operator has been transferred to national security forces for detention. Local government officials have told the public to stay indoors and avoid any type of travel until the situation is under control, adding that there have been multiple closures of schools and public transport in some areas of Sinaloa.
As of now, Ovidio has been transferred to Mexico City for processing and many have speculated that he may be extradited to the US like his father El Chapo. Despite the speculation, it is more likely that if the Mexican government solidifies the arrest, they will use Ovidio to try and make up for the embarrassment resulting from his release in 2019. The arrest of the Sinaloa operator comes just days before US President Joe Biden is expected to arrive in the nation for an official visit which appears to be a timely coincidence as the US has consistently pressured Mexican President AMLO to act against the cartels and stop the flow of fentanyl into the US. The Mexican leader has long argued against any type of confrontational tactics against the cartels with his famous “hugs not bullets” motto, trying to approach the issue with diplomacy rather than force. However, these tactics have brought the leader much criticism and little progress as empirical data shows that the cartels are growing both in numbers and operation scale.
The Sinaloa Cartel started as a collective of “plazas” or localized trafficking rings and later formed into a structured organization in the ’80s during what is known as the “golden age” of cartels following the disbandment of the Guadalajara Cartel founded by cartel kingpin Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo. At its peak, the Sinaloa Cartel had a structured hierarchy run by “El Chapo” Guzman and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia and was likely the most powerful organization in Mexico trafficking massive amounts of marijuana, heroin, and cocaine.
Following the arrest of “Chapo” and the “post-fragmentation period” of cartels that occurred in 2015 the organization’s structure became almost exclusively decentralized, meaning that instead of having a vertical hierarchy the cartel broke down into smaller cells and factions compartmentalizing operations to avoid the organization collapsing by one major arrest. Additionally, around this time period, the organization became one of the largest fentanyl producers and traffickers, a cheap artificial painkiller commonly used to cut products to make the overall cost to produce much cheaper. Currently, the organization’s spot at the top is contested by the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) which will most likely benefit and make moves against Sinaloa as the chaos stemming from Ovidio’s arrest ensues.
When will they ever learn? The government needs to LEAVE people ALONE!!!!!!