Chapiza vs Quintero War For Caborca: Dismembered Body Left in Front of the Police Headquarters

"HEARST" for Borderland Beat 

War over the territory of Caborca, Sonora continues to escalate between those in the Caborca Cartel and Sinaloa Cartel members loyal to the Chapitos. 

Warning: Some graphic images below this point. 

Quick Review 

After the arrest of Rafael Caro Quintero, a war broke out between his group -the Caborca Cartel- and Sinaloa Cartel forces from the Chapitos side for control of a northwestern region in the state of Sonora. 

On August 30, 2022, as previously covered in detail here, the Caborca Cartel left a message threatening la Chapiza, which is a term that refers to Sinaloa Cartel cartel figures who are associated with the Chapitos side of the group. 

The message was left in the municipality of Caborca, Sonora, and was signed by Caborca Cartel figures: Rodrigo Páez Quintero, alias “El R”, and Adelmo Núñez Molina, alias “Lemo Nuñez”. 

The next day, La Chapiza responded by leaving two dead bodies and a threatening message outside the home of someone associated with the Caborca Cartel. 

September 9 to 12, 2022 - Caborca 

Series of Kidnappings As Retribution for The Arrest of El Washo

Then on September 9, 2022, five Sinaloa Cartel figures were arrested in Caborca and immediately flown by helicopter out of the area (for more details, see the story here). 

The detainees being flown out so quickly seemed to signal that one or more of them was considered to be an important cartel figure. Most of the media reports at the time focused on the detainee Silvano VT, alias “El 25”, as being the important detainee however it later emerged that the detainee David N, alias “El Washo”, was the brother of Gente Nueva de Altar figure Francisco Torres Carranza, alias “El Duranguillo”. 

A soldier was killed by cartel members during the arrest of El Duranguillo, so it's likely his brother Washo was flown out of the area in order to avoid a similar casualty. 

This, however, didn’t prevent Sinaloa Cartel members from retaliating. Between September 9 - 12, seven people were kidnapped from Caborca, at various times and from various locations. 

Local news media has speculated that this was done by Sinaloa Cartel members as retribution for the arrest of El Washo. Sonora Informativo described this series of kidnappings as “the disappearance of 7 people occurred on the same stretch of road where El Washo was detained [...] Although it has not been confirmed that these violent acts were unleashed in the wake of the capture of David N [El Washo], it is important to point out that they occurred a few hours apart in the same place.” 

The seven missing persons reports were officially filed between September 11 to 12, and the state Attorney General’s Office (FGE) announced they were investigating the series of abductions. 

September 18, 2022 - Caborca

A Night of Violence: Execution of Three and Two Attempts at Arson

During the night of September 18, a spree of attacks was unleashed on the streets of the city of Caborca. 

At 10:00 pm, Two men were executed while they were driving a black Dodge Challenger on 6 De Abril Avenue. Their vehicle appears to have been rammed by another vehicle and pushed into a garage door, disabling their vehicle. The men inside the car died of multiple gunshot wounds. 

At 11:00 pm, a home on Q Avenue and 3rd Street was broken into by a group of cartel hitmen who then shot a person to death.

At 11:30 pm, it was discovered that a home on 2nd Street went up in flames. The house was just a few blocks away from the street execution that occurred minutes earlier. The front gate of the property appears to have been rammed into by a vehicle and then, after the gate fell, molotov cocktails were thrown inside. No deaths due to the fire were reported. 

At 11:50 pm, there was an attempt to burn down a Chinese restaurant located on 6th Street and G Avenue. Foul play is suspected because broken glass was found on scene, with the most likely method being molotov cocktails being thrown through windows of the establishment. 

Based on the time and locations of the attacks, it's likely the attacks were all perpetrated by the same group of cartel hitmen. Whether this group was from the Sinaloa Cartel side or the Caborca Cartel side is unclear at this time. 

September 19, 2022 - Caborca

Another Abduction 

At around 2:00 pm in the afternoon, a silver Chevrolet Tahoe SUV was found abandoned in the parking lot of the hotel City Express Caborca, address 132 Domingo Quiroz Street. The vehicle was swarmed by police officers shortly after it was reported over radio.

Well, local news sites, such as Art. 7th El Observador, write that the vehicle is presumed to be the same one which was used in the violent attacks the night before, likely spotted on surveillance camera footage.

Then, at 5:20 pm, the emergency phone line received a call which reported that a 19 year old man was just abducted near the intersection of 3rd Street and Avenue R. Unfortunately Very few further details about the abduction can be found online. 

September 22, 2022 

Execution Victim Found

The dead body of a man was found in front of a fence, on the side of the road, near kilometer 14 of the highway which connects the city of Caborca to the town of Plutarco Elías. A number of bullet shells were found on scene. News articles describe the victim as having received a coup de grace shot, which is a close range shot to the head meant to finish off a person. 

Family members later identified the deceased as 50 year old Javier Joya de la Cruz, who had been kidnapped three days earlier (Note: not the same person as the 19 year old who was kidnapped on September 19.)

According to Opinion Sonora and Ariete Caborca, these family members reported that the deceased Javier Joya de la Cruz had been kidnapped - years earlier, in 2019- but he had managed to “return by his own means.”

As a side note, there was a regional cartel figure named Jesús Alberto Joya de la Cruz, who was arrested and "linked to criminal gangs from the region" back in 2009 in Santa Ana and then shot to death alongside his son in 2019, in Hermosillo. 

Whether the deceased Javier Joya de la Cruz was related to Jesús Alberto Joya de la Cruz, or if this is simply a case of a last name being very common within a region, is unknown at this time.

September 23, 2022 - Caborca 

Dismembered Victim Left in Front of Caborca Police Station 

At 7:00 am in the morning, the emergency line received a phone call from someone reporting a dead body had been left in an alleyway known as “el de Santa Elena”, right next to the Municipal Police headquarters. 

When officers arrived, they found a white narco message sign, with a piece of human flesh placed on top. The sign lay on top of a black garbage bag which contained dismembered human remains which was spilling out of a knocked over green plastic bin. 

The message is very hard to make out in the few photos of the sign but multiple articles, like the ones from Radar Sonora, AFN Tijuana, and Opinion Sonora, say the message read as follows, as translated by Sol Prendido:

This message goes out to that gang of scumbags who want to rob and extort the humble and hardworking citizens here. 

For those of you still left, and you know who you are, be ready you fucking scumbags. 

Quick Review Source: Previous BB Story

September 9-12 Sources: FGE Press Release, Milenio, El Imparcial, El Universal, Tribuna, El Sol de Hermosillo, Sonora Informativo, Previous BB Story

September 18 Sources: Radar Sonora, Art. 7th the Observer Post 1, Post 2, Post 3, Post 4, Post 5, Post 6

September 19 Sources: Art. 7th the Observer Post 1, Post 2, Post 3, Post 4

September 22 Sources:  Opinion Sonora, Art. 7th the Observer, Ariete Caborca Post 1, Post 2, Policia Code Sonora

September 23 Sources: Opinión Sonora, AFN Tijuana, Debate, Radar Sonora, Reynosa Codigo Rojo

Categories: Chapiza vs Quintero War For Caborca