New Criminal Structures in Mexico (Part 1)
After several decades of power struggles, geographical accommodation, disappearing cartels and the birth of new splinter organizations the current crime map looks completely different to what it looked like in the past.
The new organized crime groups that are beginning to gain relevance in the territory are:
La Linea
This group was born as the armed wing of the Cartel de Juarez and has its area of operations in the state of Chihuahua.
La Linea is an extremely violent group that conflicts with the Sinaloa Cartel and The Salazar. Their main criminal activities are micro-trafficking, synthetic drug manufacturing, car theft and illegal logging.
The Salazar
The Salazar is a family-based criminal network with links to the Sinaloa Cartel. The group is primarily involved in marijuana and heroin production and transporting drugs into Arizona. It also violently defends Sonora and Chihuahua states on the cartel’s behalf. The Salazar is believed to have started in Sonora in the early 1990s by Adán Salazar Zamorano.
The Salazar operate in the states of Sonora and Chihuahua states and recently the group has also reportedly been involved in clashes with the Sinaloa Cartel in Baja California state regarding control of the Mexicali corridor.
Tijuana New Generation Cartel
The Tijuana New Generation Cartel (Cartel Tijuana Nueva Generación – CTNG) is based in Baja California and traffics heroin, cocaine, marijuana and synthetic drugs into the United States over the border crossing in Tijuana. The group emerged out of an alliance between the CJNG (Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación) and remnants of the Arellano Félix Organization
Grupo Sombra
Grupo Sombra Special Forces (Fuerzas Especiales Grupo Sombra – FEGS) is an important criminal actor in the northern part of Veracruz but also has a presence in the central states of Hidalgo and San Luis Potosí. Grupo Sombra is dedicated to microtrafficking, human trafficking, migrant smuggling, murders for hire, kidnapping, extortion, and oil theft in these places.
The organization’s members employ extremely violent tactics, often disseminating their actions via video or leaving the bodies of their victims on public roads. The group’s main rivals appear to be the Old School Zetas (Zetas Vieja Escuela) and CJNG, with the latter rapidly gaining ground in Veracruz.