Live Thread: José Ángel Canobbio Inzunza 'El Güerito' Captured in Culiacan, Sinaloa

 Borderland Beat Contributors 

Photograph By Omar Hamid García Harfuch on X (Post capture photograph of Inzunza)

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Elon Musk Posts That Cartels Are Eligible for Drone Strikes

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

Elon Musk suggested that the new FTO designations of Mexican drug cartels means using drones to attack the drug cartels on Wednesday. The tech businessman has been at the center of controversy recently due to his strong role within Donald Trump's government as part of DOGE.

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Why Cárteles Unidos Was Included on the US Foreign Terrorist Organizations List

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

From an Infobae Article Interviewing Security Expert David Saucedo

Not surprisingly, the Mexican criminal groups included in the list are the main exporters of fentanyl to the United States (CDS and CJNG); the two cartels with the largest presence on the Texas border (CDG and CDN); and the cartel (LNFM) recently included in the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) list for manufacturing and shipping fentanyl across the Tamaulipas border.

The designation that surprised many was that of the United Cartels or Carteles Unidos, a criminal alliance that has its center of operations in the Tierra Caliente of Michoacán and includes among its ranks Los Viagras, Los Blancos de Troya, the Tepalcatepec Cartel, the Zicuirán Cartel, among other cells that once belonged to La Familia Michoacana and the Knights Templar.

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State Department Notice Officially Designates 8 Cartels/Gangs as Terrorist Groups

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

The United States on Wednesday designated the gangs MS-13, Tren de Aragua, the Sinaloa Cartel among other drug cartels as global terrorist organizations, according to a Federal Register notice.

The notice issued by Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the groups pose a risk to U.S. national security, foreign policy and economic interests.

The notice was drafted on February 6, prior to the NYT leak about the designations list and made public today. According to the notice...the Cartel Terrorist Designations go into effect upon the publishing of the letter. February 20, 2025.

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The Tamaulipas Border in 2025

By Itzli

Taking a look at the current state of affairs along the Tamaulipas border with the United States.

Heads up, this article is old school Nabble forum Itzli style so expect informal first person tone without taking the time to reference everything I say. Don’t like that? Click elsewhere and I’ll refund you the $0 you paid to read this, I’ll even throw in the whole $0 I earn spending my time to write this all down. Luckily there’s still cool people here that’ll make it worth my time.

Anyways, it seems like what I can show with my writing and research over the past few months is about as good as George R. R. Martin and The Winds of Winter so rather than trying to get to this point with what I have in the works let’s just dive right into what’s going on in the world of CDG along the Tamaulipas border with Texas/United States. This is important because the Trump administration has started declaring cartels terrorist organizations. By the way, no politics in the comments, I don’t care if your MAGA, woke, or anything in between, go somewhere else besides the comment section if you want to talk about who in the United States government is the good guys and who’s the bad guys, we’d probably get more productive discussion about Kendrick Lamar versus Drake so no politics from me and no politics from you.

Back to the point, been seeing the above map on Twitter and then @LosBloqueados2 had a really good post which motivated me to write. We see this plane circling across from Nuevo Laredo, CDN territory. This cartel is interesting, of course there’s still the rumors that 40 runs it from prison but for the longest Huevo Treviño was in charge. He gets arrested and his cousin Juanito Treviño aka La Sombra is said to be running things. I got bogged down in a Los Treviño/CDN leadership history article that I’ll finish one day but for now the point I want to make is that things may not be all good in the CDN. Maybe it’s just me, but ever since 42 got arrested it seems like there’s a power play going on between Anabel Treviño and her kids on one end and Francisco Treviño and sons on the other which involves Huevo, Juanito, La Bola, etc.

The plane does another loop along a stretch that includes Ciudad Mier, Los Guerra, Miguel Aleman and Camargo which continues to be an interesting area. As @LosBloqueados2 point out, Ciudad Mier continues to be controlled by the CDN, specifically El Chamuko and El H. Apparently “El Chamuko” is a regional leader, there’s some stuff being said about him on Twitter lately. Los Guerra still seems to be the dividing line of control with Los Metros under Primito controlling to the east of there. For Los Metros you have La Galleta in Miguel Aleman, El Pirata in Diaz Ordaz,  and El Gafe in Camargo, not quite sure if he means that El Rockero is his other alias or if it’s a different dude. El Gafe has nothing to do with the famous old CDG leader that used that alias, nor does he seem to be military or anything, he’s just some young guy that’s come to power.

So CDN for the longest has been attacking from the west trying to get Miguel Aleman, like I said, Los Guerra seems to be the dividing line so you get a lot of fighting back and forth over that town. Seems that CDN figured that out and had been conducting what I called the campaign for Camargo, just forget about Miguel Aleman and hitting from the southwest rural area to attack Camargo which makes the town of Comales suddenly strategic. El Barbas is running things there. Tied into this is the whole northeast Nuevo Leon area including Doctor Coss where a lot of the recent fighting has been taking place. This is territory controlled by El Chapparro, one of the few old school Metros that worked with M3 still around. So anytime you hear about fighting in Doctor Coss, General Bravo or areas nearby it’s fighting between CDN and him.

Another loop of the airplane covers Reynosa and Rio Bravo. Reynosa has always been the crown jewel of Los Metros and continues to be controlled by El Mono M36 who used to be the bodyguard of Panochitas. Not everyone thinks this but I feel like there is still somewhat a division within Los Metros, not necessarily rivals but just the way things cluster that goes back to when the Ribereña Metros fought the Reynosa Metros so you have Primito’s crew in Miguel Aleman, Camargo, and Diaz Ordaz while Mono and Chaparro are in with more old school guys. We’ll get back to Reynosa in a bit.

The final loop is across from Matamoros, home of the Matamoros faction of the CDG. El Contador is back directly in charge, having ran things from prison for a while. Yeah he has an ankle monitor and/or has to check in with prison once a week but no one really thinks that’s stopping him from doing anything. Uncle Osiel was out but got sent to Mexico and is in prison, things are quiet on that front and it doesn’t seem like he’s really doing anything. 

It’s funny though, people were complaining some much about Ciego doing all sorts of dirt while Contador was in prison and then Contador kills him and now it’s all Contador kills his own people and can’t be trusted. From my perspective here’s the elephant in the room, all cartels are evil but bias isn’t universal, there’s a lot of framing Contador in the worst possible light. I touched on this before but it really seems that there are some accounts that are aligned with M1 Cardenas and his son Beto that focus on burning Contador. Plus Los Metros have always been big on social media and I get where some people say some of the major accounts are aligned with them, maybe not directly but there’s bias no doubt. Again, I’m not being a Contador apologist, just saying you have to take a step back on some information.

@LosBloqueados2 didn’t mention this but El Casco aka El Joker is in control of Rio Bravo, no more Miguelito it seems as he was arrested, of course you never know when someone gets quietly released. Here’s where we get back to cartel bias. I really don’t care who’s winning or losing but what people say at times matters less than what the evidence points to. I’m talking about SDR reports, that’s a good way of telling where fighting is taking place. 

When the truce between Metros and CDG Matamoros fell apart when the war between San Fernando (Sierras and ZVE) and Matamoros broke out last year things got really hot in Rio Bravo. Things have died down in Rio Bravo proper it seems and from the SDR reports it seems to me that Los Metros can’t get past Palo Blanco anymore. It also seems that Matamoros is heating up the east side of Reynosa, especially the Pharr bridge area. I see stuff about them using Ubers and public vehicles to sneak people in plus the GE being on their payroll. Similar strategy they’ve pulled before trying to heat up the plaza. Sorry it may sound like I’m being a Matamoros cheerleader but just calling it how I see it, the SDR reports point to things being hot in Reynosa, even hear about mutilated bodies but pictures never seem to come out. No one wants to be the next Minu3t.

Ultimately I think this all ties into the whole rumors of a new truce taking place which hit hard for a day and then seems to have gone by the wayside. Declaring cartels terrorist organizations and the whole threat of drone strikes destabilize the whole situation plus wars are always bad for cartel business. It makes sense to want to come up with a ceasefire and the governor would definitely be pushing for that to happen. The impression I get though is that Los Metros don’t trust Contador and I’m sure Matamoros will want concessions. Control of Rio Bravo has been mentioned as part of a potential agreement but like I said, it seems that’s already happened. My guess is that Matamoros won’t sign off unless they get access to Pharr, just not sure if they would insist on complete control or if they would settle for open access.

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Arrested El Paso CBP Officer Was Allegedly a La Linea Cartel Member

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat
From an El Paso Times Article by Daniel Borunda

The U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer allegedly involved in migrant smuggling on the El Paso border was allegedly a member of a Mexican drug cartel, a federal agent testified.

A federal magistrate judge ordered CBP Officer Manuel Perez Jr., 32, of El Paso, to remain jailed without bond at a detention hearing Thursday, Feb. 13, in federal court in Downtown El Paso. Perez is allegedly a member of the La Linea drug cartel.

Perez was fired from CBP after his arrest on federal human and drug smuggling charges on Feb. 8 by the FBI El Paso West Texas Border Corruption Task Force following a multi-agency investigation, court officials said. If convicted, he could face 10 years up to life in prison.

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Europol’s Most Wanted Marco Ebben Killed in Mexico…Again?

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

Dutch drug trafficker Marco Ebben was reportedly killed in a parking garage near Mexico City. This is not the first time Ebben has been reported shot dead in Mexico.

In May last year, Ebben briefly spoke to the news outlet Rijnmond to say that he had nothing to do with a series of explosions targeting a plumber in Vlaardingen. 

In June, Ebben was injured in a shooting in Turkey in which he was reportedly chased by men on motorcycles who opened fire on his armored car with an automatic weapon.

In late October last year, several sources told Rijnmond that Ebben had been killed in a shooting in Mexico.

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Chapitos Leave Message for Governor Villegas at Durango Legislature

  "El Armadillo" for Borderland Beat

A few days ago we published a story detailing information we obtained about how the Cartel Del Sinaloa - Chapitos faction had announced a bounty on Governor Villegas of Durango. We can now provide an update.

Firstly, I should note that the Governor's team put out a statement about our article. Below is some of it translated.

“Fake News” is how we describe the publication in which a reward is offered in exchange for information related to the Governor....NO THREATS HAVE BEEN RECEIVED against him or any member of his team...Durango maintains one of the top spots in security and this seems to weigh on our political adversaries."

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Villa Hidalgo's clandestine video surveillance system was dismantled and two monsters were secured: Jalisco. Fuerzas Especiales Charro Armed Wing Of CJNG Cartel Targeted By Military Forces

 "Char" for Borderland Beat 

This information was posted by EL OCCIDENTAL 

In the workshop where they were found there was another cargo vehicle in the process of installing ballistic plates.

FEBRUARY 13, 2025 

WRITTEN BY: ELIZABETH IBAL 

After the reinforcement of security in Villa Hidalgo, the clandestine video surveillance system of that municipality and Teocaltiche was dismantled; the cameras had false logos of the CFE and Telmex, which was operated by organized crime. They also seized two monsters and another that was in the process of being transformed.

It was this Wednesday when the State Security Secretariat announced that security was reinforced with 120 elements of that corporation and others from the Mexican Army and National Guard.

Less than 24 hours after the announcement, the first results of the surveillance tours were given.

The officers patrolled the intersection of José Esqueda and Agustín Yáñez, in the North neighborhood of Villa Hidalgo where they located a monster and a super monster inside a farm.

The "Super Monster" truck had homemade ballistic armor, as well as another smaller Ford F250 Super Duty monster type, also with ballistic armor, and without license plates.

In the same place, a Kenworth brand tractor-trailer was found, in which they were working to install ballistic armor.

Also seized was a Honda CBR brand motorcycle, year 2008, and a Toyota Hilux pickup truck, white, year 2017, without license plates and with gunshot wounds on the windows.

Also in the inspection of the property, a .223 caliber rifle, Colt brand, with a magazine loaded with six cartridges and an unloaded magazine was seized; a 7.62x51 caliber rifle, with a magazine loaded with 20 cartridges and an extra magazine also with 20 cartridges; a Glock type firearm, caliber 9 millimeters without a magazine.

Precursor chemicals for the production of explosives were seized, including a white sack with sulfur, a black plastic bag with chlorate, and an aluminum metal canister.

At the same crossing, Fabian "N", 33 years old, who has a criminal case for vehicle theft and possession of firearm cartridges for the exclusive use of the Army, and Josué "N", 39 years old, were arrested.

A video surveillance system consisting of 114 video surveillance cameras camouflaged with stickers installed illegally on posts at various points in the Villa Hidalgo area was also dismantled.

In addition, 14 radios, 10 tactical vests, a camouflage shirt, and 12 packs of cigarettes were seized.

While at the Panama and Nicaragua crossing, in the Los Arcos neighborhood of Teocaltiche.

Carlos "N", 19 years old, and Erick "N", 29 years old, were arrested here and a Chevrolet Suburban, 2008 model, without license plates, was seized from them.

They were seized two 7.62x39 caliber rifles, chargers, two drum chargers, 190 7.62x39 caliber cartridges inside a plastic bag.

In addition, they found 6 meters of green detonating cord with black lines, a bag with 300 grams of high explosive known as PE4, 7 orange electronic matches, two fragments of homemade fuse, a homemade ovoid hand grenade wrapped with black insulating tape and a number 8 electric detonator made of copper with red and yellow cables.

Twelve packages with green dried plant with the characteristics of marijuana with a total weight of 89 kilos and bags with drug doses.

SOURCE: EL OCCIDENTAL

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'Ricky', a top leader of the Northeast Cartel Or Cartel Del Noreste, arrested in Nuevo Laredo, is brought to trial. 'Mando Ricky' Will Stay In Altiplano Maximum Security Prison

 "Char" for Borderland Beat 

This information was published by RIODOCE 

Author | Editor

Date | February 12, 2025

Time | 6:46 pm

A federal judge has brought charges against Ricardo González “N”, “El Ricky”, the alleged second in command of the Cartel del Noreste, after his capture on February 3 by federal security elements in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas.

The accused will be tried for his probable responsibility in crimes against health in the form of possession for commercial purposes and carrying a firearm for the exclusive use of the Army, Navy and Air Force, with the aggravating circumstance of carrying two or more weapons, according to the Specialized Prosecutor's Office for Organized Crime (FEMDO).

During his arrest, Ricky was carrying a loaded long firearm and a short one; bags with 1,509 fentanyl pills and bags with 434.5 grams of methamphetamine hydrochloride, according to the final expert report.

According to the Attorney General's Office (FGR), Ricky was arrested by elements of the National Defense Secretariat (Defense), the Navy Secretariat (Navy), the National Guard (GN) and the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection (SSPC), in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas, after he tried to escape, and who also identified himself as the head of a criminal organization.

Later in a hearing, the Federal Public Prosecutor's Office (MPF) presented sufficient evidence to obtain the link to the process, official preventive detention, in the Federal Social Readaptation Center Number 1 "Altiplano", in Almoloya de Juárez, State of Mexico, and one month for the complementary investigation.

SOURCE: RIODOCE 

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Exclusive: Los Chapitos Offer Bounty for Durango Governor

 "El Armadillo" for Borderland Beat

Borderland Beat received the following image from a verified source within the Cartel del Sinaloa - Chapitos faction. Below is the translated text

"This is an announcement from Alejandro Lopez Guzman informing the people that as of this moment we are offering a 10 million pesos reward for information leading to the capture and/or killing of the narco governor of Durango, Esteban Villegas, for his relationship and cooperation in taking care of the Cabrera narcoterrorists and their organization in the state of Durango where he has provided security and allowed for the free distribution of drugs. We are also offering 2 million pesos for each commander and each government official involved with the Cabrera."

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Head of Security for Celaya's Mayor Killed, Possible CJNG Video Claims Attack

By "El Huaso" for Borderland Beat

Álvaro Fernando Coria Jiménez, the head of security for Celaya's mayor, was gunned down while leaving his home for work in the morning yesterday. A video released online, purportedly by the CJNG, claims responsibility for the killing.

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‘El Jando’, pilot of ‘Los Chapitos’, files for protection and temporarily halts his extradition to the US

 "Char" for Borderland Beat 

This information was posted from LOS NOTICIERISTAS 

WRITTEN BY: TERY PEREZ

Mexico City.- The pilot of ‘Los Chapitos’, Mauro Alberto ‘N’, alias ‘El Jando’, will not be extradited at the moment, due to the protection granted by the head of the Third District Court in criminal matters.

Judge Augusto Octavio Mejía Ojeda granted ‘El Jando’ a suspension of the protection trial processed for extradition out of procedure, deportation, banishment, psychological torture, mistreatment, harassment, as well as lack of food and medicine.

The judge requested the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, among other federal authorities, to submit their justified reports to confirm if there is an extradition request by the United States government.

Mejía offered a 3-day deadline to ratify the demand, otherwise the precautionary measure (protection against extradition) will cease to have effect.

The legal situation of the pilot, considered a key operator of ‘Los Chapitos’, will be determined next weekend, since his defense requested the duplication of the constitutional term to gather evidence in his favor.

Once the deadline has ended, the judge must decide whether ‘El Jando’ is linked to the process or not.

The capture of Mauro ‘N’, alias ‘El Jando’

Mauro ‘N’, known as ‘El Jando’, is 31 years old and is a civil pilot.

The SSPC considers him a key operator of the ‘Los Chapitos’ faction of the Sinaloa Cartel and attributes to him attacks with explosives carried out in Vascogil and Tamazula, Durango.

In addition, he would be linked to the armed group sent to Jesús María on January 5, 2023, to rescue Ovidio Guzmán López, where he was captured.

‘El Jando’ was arrested in Jesús María, last Saturday, February 8, in an operation that began at 3:30 in the morning, according to witnesses.

It should be remembered that, in the event, a member of the Mexican Army, assigned to the Secretariat of National Defense, lost his life.

 SOURCE: LOS NOTICIERISTAS 

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Ceferino Espinoza Angulo, "El Koyote," "El 14," "El Koy" High Ranking Los Chapitos Lieutenant Indicted In Chicago. High-Ranking Member of Sinaloa Cartel Charged in Chicago With Drug Conspiracy

 "Char" for Borderland Beat 

This information was posted by the U.S. Department of Justice 

Tuesday, February 11, 2025

CHICAGO — A federal grand jury in Chicago has indicted a high-ranking member of the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico on a drug conspiracy charge for allegedly manufacturing and distributing fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, and other drugs and importing them into the United States.

According to an indictment returned Monday in the Northern District of Illinois, CEFERINO ESPINOZA ANGULO, 43, a dual citizen of the U.S. and Mexico, employed dozens of gunmen in Mexico to protect and support the leadership of the Guzman faction of the Sinaloa Cartel, including Ivan Guzman-Salazar, Jesus Alfredo Guzman-Salazar, Ovidio Guzman-Lopez, and Joaquin Guzman-Lopez, collectively known as “the Chapitos.”  The indictment alleges that Espinoza Angulo worked with others to obtain fentanyl precursor chemicals and to manufacture fentanyl for importation into the United States.  Espinoza Angulo allegedly worked with others to transport the fentanyl, cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and ecstasy toward the U.S. border for importation into the country.  The indictment accuses Espinoza Angulo of illegally using a machine gun in furtherance of his drug trafficking crime.

The Chapitos are the sons of Joaquin Guzman Loera, also known as "El Chapo," who led the Sinaloa Cartel before being convicted by a federal jury in Brooklyn, N.Y., and sentenced to life in prison.  The Chapitos allegedly assumed their father’s role as leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel.  The Chapitos have been charged with drug trafficking in other U.S. indictments.

The indictment against Espinoza Angulo charges him with drug conspiracy and a firearm offense, which are punishable by a maximum sentence of life in federal prison and a minimum of 30 years.  Espinoza Angulo is believed to be residing in Mexico.  A U.S. warrant has been issued for his arrest.

The indictment was announced by Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, Antoinette T. Bacon, Supervisory Official of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, Tara K. McGrath, United States Attorney for the Southern District of California, and Chad Yarbrough, Assistant Director of the FBI’s Criminal Investigative Division.  Valuable assistance was provided by Homeland Security Investigations Field Offices in Arizona and Spokane, Wash.; DEA Special Operations Division, Bilateral Investigations Unit; FBI Field Offices in Washington, San Diego, and Los Angeles; and the Portland, Ore. Police Bureau, Narcotics and Organized Crime Unit, HIDTA Interdiction Taskforce.  The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michelle J. Parthum and Andrew C. Erskine of the Northern District of Illinois, Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew Sutton of the Southern District of California, and Trial Attorney Kirk Handrich of the Criminal Division’s Narcotics and Dangerous Drug Section at the Justice Department.

The case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force operation.  OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles drug trafficking organizations and other criminal networks that threaten the United States using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency approach that leverages the strengths of federal, state, and local enforcement agencies.

“Our nation’s fentanyl crisis has devastated individuals and families in northern Illinois and throughout the country,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Pasqual.  “Our office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to disrupt the production and trafficking of fentanyl and other dangerous narcotics before they can reach more victims.”

“As alleged, the defendant conspired to traffic dangerous drugs, including fentanyl, into the United States — and employed dozens of gunmen to protect his drug trafficking operation and the leadership of the Guzman faction of the Sinaloa Cartel,” said Supervisory Official Bacon.  “Stopping Mexican cartels from poisoning our communities with fentanyl and other narcotics is a top priority of this Administration.  Today’s indictment demonstrates that the Criminal Division is relentless in its pursuit of the drug traffickers who profit at the expense of the American people.”

“From San Diego to Chicago to D.C., we are united to bring down the traffickers pushing these poisons into American communities,” said U.S. Attorney McGrath. “We are attacking at every level — from street dealers to cartel leaders.”

“This indictment reinforces the FBI’s unwavering commitment to hold accountable those who endanger our communities and traffic violence and drugs across our borders,” said Assistant Director Yarbrough.  “Let this serve as a clear message: if you engage in cartel activity, we will pursue you and bring you to justice.  Together with our law enforcement partners at every level, we remain fully committed to protecting the American people and stopping the flow of these dangerous drugs into our nation.”

The public is reminded that an indictment is not evidence of guilt.  The defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial at which the government has the burden of proving guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

espinoza_angulo_indictment.pdf

Updated February 11, 2025

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Updated: Cartels Listed as Foreign Terrorist Organizations by US State Dept

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

According to the New York Times, the Trump administration plans to designate more than a half-dozen criminal groups in Latin America as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs), said five US officials with knowledge of the imminent action.

The Executive Order signed by President Trump on January 20, 2025, referred in general to cartels in Mexico. It also specifically named two gangs, Tren de Aragua, a group with roots in Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico and the United States and Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13.

The gang more commonly known as MS-13 was founded in Los Angeles, California by Salvadoran immigrants in the United States during the 1980s and 1990s and expanded throughout El Salvador and other countries following criminal deportations. While heavily involved in extortion, human trafficking and violence, they play a lesser role in the international drug trade.

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