Sinaloa: SEMAR 12-Hour Mystery Operation, Claims It Was All "Due To A Party"

"HEARST" for Borderland Beat

The Marines (SEMAR) launched an early morning operation within a gated residential subdivision within Mazatlán, in the state of Sinaloa. The 12 hour long operation was kept secret from state law enforcement and the governor, yet there are claims that the whole operation was conducted due merely to a complaint about a late night party.

The Mystery Operation 

At 5:00 am on the morning of Thursday, July 14, 2022, motorists driving on Paseo del Atlántico Avenue noticed that Navy (SEMAR) soldiers were standing at the entrances to the Club Real housing subdivision, within Mazatlán, Sinaloa. 

The soldiers were guarding the perimeter of the subdivision while a SEMAR operation was being carried out inside. Residents who lived within the subdivision who tried to leave their home were told by soldiers to return and stay inside until the operation was complete. 

A large number of military vehicles were seen parked on one lane of Doctor Carlos Canseco Avenue. These vehicles blocked the lane and caused heavy traffic congestion for the area. 

Noroeste also noted that unlike some recent drug lab raids in other parts of Sinaloa, state-level law enforcement did not appear to be involved in the Club Real subdivision operation.

At multiple points in the morning, all the way until midday, additional military personnel were called to the area. The soldiers were seen arriving at the entrance to the subdivision. 

Well-established news publication Noroeste writes witnesses spotted that among the arriving soldiers, there were a number of members of “Fuerza de Tarea Murciélago” or “Task Force Murciélago” from SEDENA high command. Task Force Murciélago allegedly reports to the head of the SEDENA and the President of Mexico. 

In later articles, they cease to even cite witnesses and instead write outright that “at around 11:00 a.m. elements of the Task Force Murciélago of the High Command of the Secretary of National Defense arrived.”

News publication Riodoce wrote that “federal sources confirmed that personnel from Mexico City are the ones carrying out the operation. It is expected that personnel from the Attorney General's Office (FGR) will arrive in Mazatlán in the next few hours, with elements from the Specialized Attorney General's Office for Organized Crime (FEMDO).” 

Los Noticieristas writes that “according to unofficial information, there is talk of at least three suspected criminals detained , two men and one woman, at the scene by federal forces.”

A number of items covered in black bags were seen being loaded into a white van, according to Riodoce. 

After over 12 hours of activity, the SEMAR operation appeared to conclude. At around 6:17 pm at night, at least 12 Navy vehicles were seen leaving the subdivision, while escorting a number of vehicles that had been seized in the operation. 

The seized vehicles appear to be a black Chevrolet Cheyenne double cab pickup truck, with three motorcycles loaded into the bed of the pickup. As well as a green Baic SUV, a Mini Cooper, and a gray Mazda SUV. Although the operation concluded, the property that was searched remained guarded by soldiers. 

The Governor Was Kept in the Dark 

While this was going on, the governor of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya, was attending a State Public Security Council meeting. 

At the end of the meeting, the governor was asked by reporters about Army soldiers who were spotted at the ongoing operation at Club Real. 

He responded "that was the Navy, it is not the Army. I have no information. Why? Because many times these things are not reported [ahead of time] to you. Maybe they bring a particular, specific operation [to you], but they often do it themselves," he said.

"There are things they do and they don't inform you. Maybe they even distrust that we are going to leak information about it in a press statement. These operations generally have specific motives, but they are not a generalized situation in the state.”

The Alleged Reason for the SEMAR Operation 

In Noroeste’s initial article, they write that it was “reported that the operation was in response to the presence of an armed group that had been using a house as a ‘piso franco’ (or safe house) for months, but this version has not been confirmed by the authorities in the area.”

Contrapeso Ciudadano wrote about a similar allegation, saying that it was rumored that one of the properties was used as a safe house by an armed group. 

In Noroeste’s second article, which was put out many hours later in the day, they write that “the military deployment derived from a report of a party in one of the houses of the exclusive subdivision [...] According to testimonies of people in the area, this early morning the party ‘was at its peak’, and it is believed that a complaint alerted the federal security forces.” 

Ríodoce says that their federal sources told them that there are three detainees from the operation, named Carlos "N", José "N" and Bertha "N". They will likely be charged for drug trafficking offenses. No photos of the detainees have been released as of the writing of this story.

It was also confirmed that weapons and drugs were seized from the property in Club Real, but so far no quantities have been revealed.

Sources: Noroeste Article 1, Article 2, Article 3, Riodoce Article 1, Article 2, Los Noticieristas, Adiscusion, Entre Veredas, Por Los Pasillos, Contrapeso Ciudadano