11 Dead After La Linea Shootout At Horse Race in El Sauz, Chihuahua

"HEARST" for Borderland Beat 

Eleven people were killed after a cartel group opened fire on a rival group during a horse race near the town of El Sauz in the state of Chihuahua in an event that has quickly been dubbed the “El Sauz Massacre” by news outlets. Although no official statements have alleged this, the Sinaloa Cartel and La Linea are suspected to be involved in the shootout.

The Shooting at the Horse Race

At around 7:45 pm on the night of Sunday, April 24, 2022, the emergency phone line received a number of phone calls reporting an active shooting at a horse track about half a mile outside of the small town of El Sauz, near the other small town of Nuevo Delicias. El Sauz is about an hour's drive north of the city of Chihuahua, the state’s capital city. 

The race track, named El Mezquite, is only accessible via a small dirt road. The shooting was reportedly between two rival cartel groups at a clandestine (unregistered) race track named El Mezquite. Initial witness reports allege that the gunfire began while a horse race was taking place, with dozens of spectators watching. Some witness reports, such as those from El Heraldo de Chihuahua, that rival cartel groups “ran into each other” at the race. 

So, how organized was this horse race? In photos of the location, the race track appears to have a start gate. Eloy García Tarín, the director of the state government has indicated that alcoholic beverages were also being sold at the track, noting it was doing so without a government permit. A horse trailer, with a horse onboard, was found on site by officers following the shooting. 

Multiple deceased men lying on the ground, all had suffered gunshot injuries. In alleged photos of the incident, some of these deceased men can be seen lying on the actual dirt race track. Personnel would later report that the deceased they found appeared to be between 35 to 55 years of age. 

Officers also discovered at least seven seriously wounded people with gunshot injuries on scene. Paramedics were called to the location and the injured were transported to the nearest hospitals. Two were sent to Central Hospital, five were sent to Anchondo General Hospital. 

It later turned out that two more people were injured in the shootings but they were driven by friends, inside personal vehicles to other hospitals before police arrived at the race track, making a total of at least nine people injured in the shooting. 

Later the Ministry of Public Security announced that a total of eleven people had died from the shooting, many of which died while they were being transported by paramedics, others dying just hours after being admitted to a hospital. They have only released the names of five of the eleven deceased so far. Some of the names of those injured in the shooting, who may be alive or dead have been reported by the press.

The officers requested support on scene and soldiers from both the National Guard and the Army (SEDENA) were called to the area, as well as some state police officers. 

Five vehicles and a motorcycle were found to have been abandoned at the location. Some of these vehicles were visibly damaged by gunshots. 

The Cartel Landscape of El Sauz 

Within the last five years Chihuahua has been contested primarily between the cartel group La Linea and the Sinaloa Cartel.

La Linea is currently believed to be led by Jesús Salas Aguayo, alias “El Chuyin”. Some of the La Linea plaza bosses from nearby areas include: 

Socorro Ramírez Luján, alias “El Coyo”, who is thought to control Coyame del Sotol, Aldama, Julimes, Benavides, Ojinaga

Hugo Fuentes, alias “El Cachas”, who is thought to control Namiquipa, Bachiniva, Cuauhtémoc

The most recent and close-in-proximity Sinaloa Cartel group to El Sauz is actually Los Salazars (who are still sometimes rumored to have had a split from Chapitos). 

Los Salazar hung a banner on December 30, 2021 which challenged a state police officer who they alleged was on the payroll of La Linea. The banner was hung in Chihuahua city which is quite close in proximity to the town of El Sauz, where the shooting occurred. For more details on the Salazar banner hung a few months ago, please see this previous story. 

Los Salazars is thought to be led by José Crispín Salazar Zamorano, alias “Tío Pin”. Specifics about which Salazars bosses are working in Chihuahua city are nebulous and vague currently.

Two other Sinaloa Cartel groups control areas somewhat near El Sauz. Gente Nueva del Tigre is believed to be led by Edgar Alfredo Gamboa Sosa, alias “El Tigre Blanco” and Raul Gamboa Sosa, alias “El Cabo”. They were believed to control Nonoava, Cusihuiriachi, San Francisco de Borja, Carichí a number of years ago although whether this information is still correct is unknown. 

There is also a Sinaloa Cartel group allegedly in Camargo, Delicias, and Meoquil thought to be led by Juan Carlos Pérez Rodríguez, alias “El Placas”, although there haven’t been reports about activity from this group since 2020.

*Note: The victim Enrique González Zapata is sometimes reported as Enrique Rosales Zapata

Sources: El Heraldo de Chihuahua Article 1, Article 2, Article 3, Article 4, Border Report, Noroeste, Agencia Informativa VMC, El Imparcial, Animal Politico, El Universal, Nota Central, Diario MX, El Diario de Chihuahua Article 1, Article 2, Article 3, Article 4, Article 5, Article 6, Article 7, Fronte Net Article 1, Article 2

For sourcing related to CDS & Linea in Chihuahua, please see Notable Figures - Gente Nueva, Notable Figures - La Linea