Thousands were murdered: the act of betrayal that tore apart the most dangerous organization in the world

The news in brief:

• An internal war in the Sinaloa cartel turned the city of Culiacan into a bloodbath.
• The conflict broke out after the son of “El Chapo” kidnapped and betrayed his accomplice “El Mayo”.
• About 3,000 people have been murdered since the beginning of the violent fighting in July 2024.
• The governor of the state of Sinaloa was accused in the US of accepting bribes from the sons of “El Chapo”.
• The Mayitos faction infiltrates the city and uses severe torture against its opponents.
• Why it matters: The collapse of the “El Chapo” dynasty deepens the chaos in Mexico.
  

  ---

The internal war that is rocking the Sinaloa cartel in Mexico has turned the city of Culiacan into a bloody battleground, where bodies are dumped on the sides of the roads, threatening signs are hung in the streets and thousands of people are murdered or disappeared. Almost two years of violent conflict between the two main factions of the cartel, the “Chapitos” of the sons of drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán, and the “Mayitos” associated with Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, have completely changed the reality in the state of Sinaloa and deepened the chaos in an area considered for decades the capital of the drug trade in Mexico and in the world in general.

According to the report, the “Chapitos” who were once considered the undisputed heirs of the empire built by El Chapo, are now in a position of increasing weakness. The confrontation between them and Zambada’s men began in July 2024, after one of Guzmán’s sons, Joaquín Guzmán Lopes, lured Zambada to a meeting ostensibly intended to mediate a local political dispute. Instead, Zambada was attacked by gunmen, kidnapped and extradited to the United States, where he was arrested by American authorities. According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, Guzman Lopes hoped that Zambada’s extradition would improve his legal situation as part of negotiations he conducted with the authorities in the United States.

This kidnapping shocked Sinaloa and ignited an unprecedented wave of violence. Within a few weeks, roadblocks were set up in the streets, gun battles spread throughout Culiacan and hundreds of armed men from both sides went to open war. Since 2024, according to the reports, about 3,000 people have been killed, including cartel members and innocent civilians, and about 3,600 more are declared missing.

In the city itself, the signs of the war are visible almost everywhere. Culiacan, where makeshift fentanyl production labs operate almost openly, is full of illegal cameras, motorcycle-mounted observers and gunmen who monitor the movements of the military and security forces – to alert the cartels before they risk capture. The cartel also uses drones and surveillance technologies to track down rivals.

According to security experts in Mexico, one of the turning points was the sense of betrayal surrounding Zambada’s kidnapping. Many of the old factions in Sinaloa saw the move by the “Chapitos”, Beni Guzman, as crossing a red line, and this allowed the “Maitos” to recruit new allies. Security expert Eduardo Guerrero told the Wall Street Journal that “when there’s a betrayal at the top, that’s the worst thing that can happen to an organization like this,” because it creates a violent struggle between rival factions.

According to the report, the “Mayitos” gradually succeeded in penetrating Culiacan, kidnapping low-level activists of the “Chapitos” and extracting information from them under torture. Some of the abductees were murdered and their bodies dismembered. A report by the Office of the Attorney General in Mexico states that the Mayitos exhibited a “more militant profile” than their rivals.

At the same time, the Mexican government also began to act aggressively against the “Chapitos”, who are considered one of the main factors in the distribution of fentanyl to the United States. According to security sources, a significant part of the network of Ivan Archibald Guzman, one of El Chapo’s most prominent sons, has been dismantled, and many of his associates have been killed, arrested or have gone over to the opponent’s side.

The internal conflict in the cartel was also accompanied by serious allegations of political corruption. Last month, an indictment was filed in the United States against the governor of the state of Sinaloa, Ruben Roca Moya, and nine other current and former senior officials, on suspicion of taking bribes from the “Chapitos” to protect their activities. According to the indictment, Roca Moya personally met with two of El Chapo’s sons before the 2021 elections and received political support from them. It is also claimed that senior officials of the local police themselves participated in the cartel violence, including kidnappings and murders of rivals.

Roca Moya rejected the accusations and claimed that it was a political attack against the ruling Morena party of President Claudia Sheinbaum. Scheinbaum herself also said that the evidence presented by the United States was insufficient for extradition and arrest.

The war is eroding not only the cartels themselves but also the social fabric of Sinaloa. Politicians, police officers, businessmen and restaurant owners who for years benefited from the money that flowed from the drug trade, also found themselves in the cycle of violence, according to the report. In a city where the world of crime was deeply intertwined in everyday life, the feeling is that the whole system is now crumbling.

El Chapo’s mythological status is also still felt in the area. He who was born into a poor family and became one of the most powerful drug dealers in the world, is still considered by many in Sinaloa to be a popular and almost legendary figure. Although he is currently serving a life sentence and another 30 years in a guarded prison in the United States, his image still appears on hats, in songs and other references in local culture.

But now, according to law enforcement officials, it seems that the dynasty he built is losing control. In one of the worst acts of violence in the war, four decapitated bodies were hanged on a bridge, and a car with 16 more bodies was left beside them. A sign left on the spot reads: “Welcome to New Sinaloa.”