12 dead and 20 missing in northern Mexico amid Sinaloa cartel feud 

Mexico City, Mexico — Authorities in Sinaloa, Mexico reported that an ongoing wave of violence between criminal groups has amounted to 12 deaths, 20 possible abductions, and eleven people injured in three days . Some officials have said the violence is related to the July 25 arrest in the United States of Sinaloa Cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada. 

According to the Sinaloa Prosecutor’s Office, since September 9, 12 people have been murdered related to clashes between criminal groups in the state.

The state is a stronghold for one of Mexico’s most powerful and storied cartels, which was also co-founded by Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera, whose son, Joaquin Guzmán López, was arrested along with Zambada at an El Paso, Texas airport. 

Sinaloa has been recently besieged by armed groups, with citizens reporting shootings, kidnappings, auto thefts, and roadblocks since Monday. Police have also reported 20 complaints of disappearances filed by relatives. 

As a result of the violence, Governor Rubén Rocha Moya has announced school closures in four state municipalities, including in the capital Culiacán. He also canceled celebrations for the 209th anniversary of Mexico’s Independence on September 15. 

During a press conference on Thursday, Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said he would deploy the military to reinforce state security. 

“There is the Army in coordination with the Navy, the National Guard, and the State Police; they are pending. I want to tell the people of Culiacán, of Sinaloa, that we have sufficient presence to guarantee peace and tranquility,” he said. 

The president also said that the violence is a result of the recent arrest of El Mayo Zambada, who is believed to have been betrayed by Guzman Lopez, the son of El Chapo, and handed over to U.S. authorities in El Paso.

“There’s infighting between two groups, and we need to ensure that the population is not affected and that they don’t clash with each other. As I mentioned, this is an issue related to the confrontation between groups,” he explained. 

This is not the first time that the Sinaloa Cartel has taken to the streets of their home state in a show of extreme violence. On two different recent occasions, the criminal group has unleashed a wave of violence over the arrest of Ovidio Guzmán, El Chapo’s younger son, and one of the cartel’s underbosses.

On October 17, 2019, Ovidio Guzmán’s first arrest prompted a violent response from his Cartel, which resulted in the murder of nine military officers and his liberation by order of López Obrador. 

In January 2023, after Ovidio’s second arrest, shootings, roadblocks, and torching of vehicles were reported; this time, however, the young kingpin was promptly extradited to the U.S. 

Regarding the current violence plaguing Sinaloa, it is believed to be an internal war between the “Los Chapitos” bloc within the Cartel, made up of Chapo’s sons, and Zambada’s people, to consolidate their power. 

Zambada, the longtime cartel leader, will have his first court appearance in New York on Friday where he will be arraigned on 17 charges against him, including murder, weapons possession, money laundering, drug production, and trafficking.