[182][183], For many years, there were long-fought battles between the Gulf and Sinaloa Cartels, that eventually led the two to reevaluate the situation and decide whether or not this combat was in either organization's best interests. [98] Their rivals, the Sinaloa Cartel, had lost some territories to Los Zetas, and went down from 23 states in dominion to 16. [112], In early July 2019, Los Zetas leaders Jorge Antonio "El Yorch" Gloria Palacios, the second-in-command of the Cartel Del Noreste (CDN) faction of Los Zetas, and Hugo "El Ganso" Sanchez Garcia, who served as head of Los Zetas in San Fernando, were detained by Mexican authorities. Als Sinaloa-Kartell (spanisch Cártel de Sinaloa) bekannt ist die mexikanische Verbrecherorganisation, die Geschäften im Drogenhandel, der Geldwäsche und dem Menschenhandel nachgeht. US offered $5m reward for his capture, he is responsible for importing thousands of kilograms of cocaine and methamphetamine to the US every year and murdered an untold number of Guatemalan civilians during the systematic takeover of the Guatemalan border region. "[102], On 14 July 2013, it was reported that the Mexican Marine Corps captured the Zetas leader Miguel Ángel Treviño Morales, also known as "Z-40" in Anáhuac, Nuevo León, near the border of Tamaulipas state. They pointedly noted that they had carried out executions and kidnappings under orders of the Gulf Cartel when they served as their enforcers, and they were originally created by them for that sole purpose. [190] In addition, Sureños share connections with Los Zetas, as do the gangs MS-13, Mexican Mafia, and Latin Kings. [39][40][41] Decena lured more than thirty deserters from the elite Grupo Aeromóvil de Fuerzas Especiales (GAFE) to become his personal bodyguards, and later, as his mercenary wing. On 24 February 2010, gunmen onboard hundreds of trucks marked C.D.G, XXX, and M3 (the insignias of the Gulf Cartel), clashed with Zetas gunmen in the northern cities of Tamaulipas state. [202] In addition, the Obama administration made a very modest effort by way of support for the struggling country although "former drug czar Barry McCaffrey told Congress that Merida, was ‘a drop in the bucket,’" and that the United States "’cannot afford to have a narco-state as [their] neighbour.’"[202] In addition, there are formal charges that the former Tamaulipas state Governors, Manuel Cavazos Lerma (1993–1999), Tomás Yarrington (1999–2004), and Eugenio Hernández Flores (2005–2010) have had close ties with the Gulf-Zeta organization. Early in 2012 it was reported that 'Los Zetas' are operating in the northern Venezuela–Colombia border, and have teamed up with the Colombian outfit called Los Rastrojos. [43] Some of these former GAFE members reportedly received training in commando and urban warfare from the Israeli and U.S. Special Forces. [147], A confrontation inside a maximum security prison in Nuevo Laredo on 15 July 2011 left 7 inmates dead and 59 escaped. The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) considers the Los Zetas to be "one of the most dangerous criminal organizations in the world. [175] The war then spread out through eleven municipalities of Tamaulipas, nine of them bordering Texas. [156] As a result, most police forces in Tamaulipas are believed to be susceptible to corruption due to their low wages, and accept bribes from organized crime groups. [131] On 30 January 2012, the Attorney General of Mexico issued a communiqué ordering the governors and their families to remain in the country as they are being investigated for possible collaboration with cartels. [113][114], In January 2020, Los Zetas regional leader José Carmen N., also known as "El Comandante Reyes," was arrested in Oaxaca. [160] The following month, the federal government was asked to send in troops to combat the drug cartels in the area, to "consolidate actions on public safety" and "strengthen the capacity of their institutions. [184] The complexity and territorial advantage of Los Zetas forced the Gulf Cartel to seek an alliance with the Sinaloa Cartel and La Familia Michoacana. Members of drug gang "Los Zetas" Margarito Mendoza and Carmen Zuniga are shown to the press in Mexico City on October 22, 2010. Months later, Hernández Flores finally recognized that several parts of Tamaulipas were "being overrun by organized crime violence." [36][37][38] The radio code for commanding Federal Judicial Police officers in Mexico was "Y" and those officers are nicknamed "Yankees", while Federal Judicial Police in charge of a city was codenamed "Z"; thus they were nicknamed as "Zetas", the Spanish word for the letter. "[138] Gutiérrez later recognized the work of the federal troops and acknowledged that his city was experiencing "an escalation in violence. Confrontations between these two groups temporarily paralyzed entire cities in broad daylight. [134][135], In Tampico, Mayor Óscar Pérez Inguanzo was arrested on 12 November 2011 due to his "improper exercise of public functions and forgery" of certain documents. Los Zetas Cartel. [95][96][97], As of 2012, Los Zetas had control over 11 states in Mexico, making it the drug cartel with the largest territory in the country. Although the Joint Operation Nuevo León-Tamaulipas issued in 2007, along with several other military-led operation by the federal government, have brought thousands of troops to restore order in Tamaulipas, on 9 May 2011, Mexican Federal Police, along with the Mexican Army, disarmed all police forces in the state of Tamaulipas, beginning with the cities of Matamoros and Reynosa. On 29 October 2011 the Global Intelligence group Stratfor released a report stating that if Anonymous did go through with OpCartel, most certainly it would lead to more deaths and could leave bloggers and others open to reprisal attacks by the cartels. But quickly the Los Zetas gets a Garrote and strangles the mob member to death. Due to his violent and confrontational personality, Treviño Morales began to take over the assets of Los Zetas and replaced Lazcano as the head in early 2010. L'organisation fut à l'origine créée par le chef du cartel du Golfe, Osiel Cárdenas Guillen (en) pour lui servir de bras armé jusqu'à devenir aujourd'hui indépendante. This group was founded by corrupt members of an elite unit of Mexico's special forces. Their conflict also spread to U.S. soil, where Gulf Cartel hit men killed two Zeta members in Brownsville, Texas on 5 October 2010. A Mob member runs in and attacks a member of Los Zetas with a baseball bat. [110][111], On 26 May 2019, an operative for Los Zetas in the Veracruz municipalities of Las Choapas and Agua Dulce was arrested by the Mexican Navy. More than 30 … Because the cartel was quite new at the time, it competed with more established cartels by using extreme violence and cruelty as a form of psychological warfare. [31] As of March 2016, Grupo Bravo (Bravo Group) and Zetas Vieja Escuela (Old School Zetas) had formed an alliance with the Gulf Cartel against Cartel Del Noreste (Cartel of the Northeast). [22] While primarily concerned with drug trafficking, the organization also runs profitable sex trafficking and gun running rackets. [66] Other reports mention, however, that the divide occurred due to a disagreement on who would take on the leadership of the cartel after the extradition of Cárdenas. To set the records straight, Los Zetas was formed by Mexican ex-military men. [118], The drug violence and political corruption that has plagued Tamaulipas, the home state of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas, has fueled fears of it becoming a "failed state" and a haven for drug traffickers and criminals. As of 2012, Los Zetas has control over 11 states in Mexico, making it the drug cartel with the largest territory in the country. Los Zetas' training locations have been identified as having a similar setup as military GAFE training facilities. [136] In mid-2010, both Flores and the mayor of Reynosa, Óscar Luebbert Gutiérrez – both members of the PRI – were criticized for claiming that there were no armed confrontations in Tamaulipas and that the widespread violence was "only a rumor. In order to keep his organization and leadership, Cárdenas sought out Arturo Guzmán Decena, a retired Army lieutenant who lured more than 30 army deserters of the Mexican Army's elite Grupo Aeromóvil de Fuerzas Especiales (GAFE) to become his personal bodyguards, and later, as his mercenary wing. They also stated that they would not be moving forward with releasing the information they had of several cartel members. Los Zetas responded and countered the accusations by posting their own banners throughout Tamaulipas. [190], On 13 February 2017, Venezuelan vice president Tareck El Aissami was sanctioned by the United States Treasury Department under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act, with US officials accusing him of facilitating drug shipments from Venezuela to Mexico and the US, freezing millions of dollars of assets purportedly under El Aissami's control. [179], Confrontations between the two groups temporarily paralyzed entire cities in broad daylight. Los Zetas was named after its first commander, Arturo Guzmán Decena, whose Federal Judicial Police radio code was "Z1", a code given to high-ranking officers. Los Zetas Language: Most involved in Los Zetos speak spanish Use hand signs to communicate with other members of the gang Material Culture: Dugs Fire arms Money Symbols: Los Zetas mark their territory with a Z 100% as seen in the picture Los Zetas members tattoo their bodies with The clash between these two groups started in Reynosa, Tamaulipas, and then expanded to Nuevo Laredo and Matamoros. [17][18] They are known for engaging in brutally violent "shock and awe" tactics such as beheadings, torture, and indiscriminate murder. [30] However such plans have been delayed at the request of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador. Former United States President Donald Trump had also expressed interest in designating cartels as terrorist organizations. Arturo Guzmán Decena, and this group formed the core of Los Zetas. In addition, Los Zetas charged that the Gulf Cartel also kills innocent civilians, and then blames the Zetas for their atrocities. [25][26] The origins of Los Zetas date back to the late 1990s, when commandos of the Mexican Army deserted their ranks and began working as the enforcement arm of the Gulf Cartel. [32] In March 2019, Texas Republican congressman Chip Roy introduced a bill that would list the Cartel Del Noreste faction of Los Zetas, Jalisco New Generation Cartel and Gulf Cartel as foreign terrorist organizations. [65] In addition, Los Zetas charged that the Cartel was scapegoating them for the murders of innocent civilians. [205], Split from the Gulf Cartel and Civil War between Los Zetas and Gulf Cartel. The att [132][133] In 2012, Yarrington was further accused of money laundering for Los Zetas and the Gulf Cartel. In addition, from the perspective presented by the Gulf Cartel, the narco-banners placed by them in the cities of Matamoros, Tamaulipas and Reynosa, Tamaulipas explained that the reason for their rupture was that Los Zetas had expanded their operations not only to drug trafficking, but also to extortion, kidnapping, homicide, and theft. Some sources mention that the Gulf Cartel began looking to form a truce with the Sinaloa Cartel their rivals, and Los Zetas did not want to recognize the treaty settlement. If he was not freed, the man in the video threatened to expose photos and the names of several people who collaborate with the cartel, such as police officers and taxi drivers. [189] A recent report from the FBI shows US street gangs growing closer with Mexican cartels. [36][48] However, in November 2002, Decena was killed in a military action at a restaurant in Matamoros, Tamaulipas,[49] allowing Heriberto Lazcano ("Z3") to take control of the group. On 4 November 2011, Anonymous posted on the Iberoamerican Blog that the kidnapped member had been released and that they had confirmed his identity. Although drug-related violence had existed long before the start of the Mexican Drug War, it often happened in low-profile levels, with the government "looking the other way" in exchange for bribes while drug traffickers went about their business —as long as there was no violence. Although their military training was diluted over time, their brutality was not. [59] As other organized crime groups subsequently copied the Zetas' brutal and superfluous methods to ensure they could survive, this resulted in the violence in Mexico escalating to much higher levels and to new forms. The group was originally made up of 34 Mexican Special Forces soldiers. Los Zetas (Zetas, Zs) is a brutal and much-feared drug cartel in Mexico, and is considered by the U.S. government to be "the most violent drug cartel operating in Mexico." The Jalisco New Generation Cartel (Spanish: Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación) or CJNG, formerly known as Los Mata Zetas and Los Torcidos, is a semi-militarized Mexican criminal group based in Jalisco and headed by Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes ("El Mencho"), one of Mexico's most-wanted drug lords. [185], Following the conflict with the Gulf Cartel, Los Zetas joined forces with the Beltrán Leyva Cartel (who was simultaneously separating from the Sinaloa Cartel) as well as the Juarez Cartel and Tijuana Cartel or Arellano Félix organization, to counteract the alliance of the Gulf Cartel, Sinaloa Cartel and La Familia Michoacana cartels. After Decena was killed in 2002 and his deputy was captured the following year, Heriberto Lazcano (also known as … [124] During the 71-year rule of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), the Mexican government would conduct customary arrests and allow cartel business to continue. [44], Once Guillen consolidated his power, he expanded the responsibilities of Los Zetas, which began to organize kidnappings,[45] protection rackets,[46] extortion,[47] securing cocaine supply and trafficking routes known as plazas (zones) and executing its foes, often with extreme violence. News reports indicate that the troops could only replace half of the policemen in the state. The operation to expose information of people who work with Los Zetas, dubbed "Operation Cartel", was reportedly started as a result of an Anonymous member being kidnapped during Operation Paperstorm in Veracruz,[203] a once peaceful city. United States President Donald Trump had also expressed interest in designating cartels as terrorist organizations. Los Zetas are inherently an unstable organized crime group with a long history of brutal violence, and with the possibility of more if the infighting continues and if they fight off without a central command. In the border city of Reynosa, Tamaulipas, 85 inmates escaped from prison on 10 September 2010. Within the United States, Los Zetas are using social media as a method of communication between the two countries and are also using the sites as a method of recruiting young aspiring members who in their perception see the actions of the cartel as glorified and are able to ask how they can join. [192], Following a bilateral law enforcement investigation named 'Operation Black Jack', executed by the ATF, DEA, ICE and the FBI, three Zeta safe houses were identified in Mexico and raided by Mexican Federal security forces, releasing more than 40 kidnapped individuals,[37] and making the largest weapons seizure in the history of Mexico; it included 540 rifles including 288 assault rifles and several .50-caliber rifles, 287 hand grenades, 2 M72 LAW anti-tank weapons, 500,000 rounds of ammunition, 67 ballistic vests, 3 anti aircraft weapons and 14 sticks of dynamite. [115] He was believed to be in charge of the gang's operations in 12 municipalities in Veracruz, including Acayucan, Minatitlán and Coatzacoalcos, known as the state's most violent towns. Los Zetas ou Cartel de Los Zetas (prononcé [los ˈsetas] : les « Z » en espagnol) est un cartel mexicain. Back in the days of the 71-year rule of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), if the drug cartels got out of hand, the Mexican government would conduct some arrests, make some disappearances, and the drug lords would get their people back in line again. [99], By the beginning of 2012, Mexico's government escalated its offensive against the Zetas with the announcement that five new military bases will be installed in the group's primary areas of operation. The reports also indicate that in Aguascalientes, a state where violence levels are much lower, policemen are paid five times more than in Tamaulipas. [62] As a result of this imbalance, the Cartel tried to curtail their own enforcers' influence and ended up instigating a civil war. Arturo Guzmán Decena (Z1) was killed by a rival cartel member on November 2002 in a restaurant in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, allowing Heriberto Lazcano Lazcano (Z3) to ascend to the apex of the paramilitary group.