Tag: cartels

US Deports Ex-Ecuadorian Minister Tied to Cartel Murder of Presidential Candidate

ICE overrode judge’s decision blocking José Serrano’s removal.

Ex-Ecuadorian minister José Serrano, accused of aiding a cartel murder presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio in 2023, has been deported by ICE.

Ecuadorian conservative Presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio was assassinated at a campaign rally in August 2023.

Fernando Villavicencio was reportedly shot in the head three times.

Supporters of the popular conservative, Fernando Villavicencio, managed to capture a suspect after the assassination.

A grenade was also found at the scene.

The criminal gang “Los Lobos,” based in Ecuador, later claimed responsibility for the assassination.

José Serrano’s removal took place even after a US judge blocked Serrano’s removal arguing he may be tortured if returned to the South American nation.

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US Military Shoots Down 3 Mexican Cartel Drones With Laser

A laser system was used to shoot down three drug cartel drones in southern Texas, close to the Mexican border, the U.S. military said on Aug. 27.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command, in a joint statement, said an Army Multipurpose High Energy Laser (AMP-HEL) was used overnight on Aug. 25-26 in the Rio Grande Valley.

The Joint Task Force-Southern Border (JTF-SB) deemed the three drones to be hostile and posing a physical threat to U.S. military personnel and their partners in U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP).

Maj. Gen. Curtis Taylor, commander of JTF-SB, said the successful operation against the drones was a testament to the readiness, vigilance, and technological edge of his force.

US Will ‘Not Tolerate Hostile Surveillance’

“Cartel networks are increasingly employing unmanned aircraft systems to facilitate illicit human-smuggling and actively spy on our personnel and law enforcement partners,” Taylor said. “By integrating layered countermeasures alongside advanced directed-energy capabilities like this laser system, we have made it clear that we will not tolerate hostile surveillance.”

Ammon Blair, a former U.S.Border Patrol agent and senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation’s Secure & Sovereign Texas Initiative, told The Epoch Times in March 2025 that he recalled hearing cartel-operated drones overhead while working along the Texas border.

“You’d be running, and you’d have a drone right above your head and tracking every move you made,” Blair said at the time.

In February, the airspace around El Paso International Airport was closed for 7 hours for “special security reasons.”

The White House told The Epoch Times in an emailed statement at the time that Mexican cartel-operated drones had breached U.S. airspace and that the Department of War took action to disable them.

In other parts of Mexico, cartels have used drones to drop explosives in deadly attacks, but there is no suggestion the drones in the Texas incident were armed.

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Mexican national operating money service charged with laundering cartel drug proceeds

Christopher A. Bravo Marin, 46, was indicted by a federal grand jury last week charging him with conspiring to launder at least $750,000 in drug proceeds on behalf of the Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), one of the most prolific and dangerous drug cartels in Mexico, according to U.S. Attorney Daniel Rosen.

Marin, aka Bravo, a Mexican national was arrested Monday by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) special agents. He appeared before a U.S. magistrate judge in Minneapolis on Aug. 25, 2026.

According to the charges:

From at least February 2023 to at least February 2026, Bravo, an employee of a Minnesota-based money transmitting business, conspired with members of a CJNG drug distribution cell in Minnesota to launder drug proceeds and transfer them to cartel leaders in Mexico through the money transmitter where he worked. Bravo used his position at the money transmitter and his understanding of his employer’s compliance policies and procedures to evade their anti-money laundering controls and conceal the illicit source of the funds he laundered. Cartel members paid Bravo approximately $40-50 for each transfer that he laundered.

To transfer the funds, Bravo allegedly structured the amount of money to be sent to Mexico across multiple transfers, ensuring that each transfer was always right below $1,000—the money transmitter’s threshold for collecting and verifying a customer’s identification document. Bravo created fake names of Hispanic origin to serve as the senders and sent the money to straw beneficiaries in Mexico whose names he received from cartel members.

After processing the transfers, Bravo forged the signature of the senders on each payment confirmation receipt to make the transfer appear legitimate and texted screenshots of the receipts to his co-conspirators so that the funds could be redeemed in Mexico.

Bravo is charged with one count of conspiracy to engage in money laundering, which carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Trial attorney Javier Urbina of the Criminal Division’s Money Laundering, Narcotics and Forfeiture Section (MNF) and Assistant United States Attorney Rebecca E. Kline for the District of Minnesota are prosecuting the case.

The U.S. Attorney’s press release explained that MNF’s mission is to take the profit out of crime, eliminate drug cartels, and protect the U.S. financial system. MNF pursues criminal prosecutions and criminal and civil asset recovery actions involving: financial facilitators who launder profits for criminals; financial institutions and their officers and employees whose actions threaten the U.S. financial system and financial institutions; international money launderers who support transnational organized crime; and the top command and control of international drug trafficking organizations.

MNF’s Bank Integrity Unit investigates and prosecutes banks and other financial institutions, including their officers, managers and employees whose actions threaten the integrity of the individual institution or the wider financial system.

“This defendant strengthened a criminal infrastructure by helping transfer hundreds of thousands of dollars in drug proceeds to cartel leaders,” said Rosen. “My office remains committed to taking down drug trafficking organizations that threaten the public safety of the people of Minnesota.”

Bravo was released from custody on an appearance bond after making his initial court appearance.

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Nevada man pleads guilty to providing 140 firearms to drug trafficking organizations in Mexico

From April 1, 2020, to September 17, 2025, Osorio conspired with co-defendants to purchase firearms, magazines and ammunition on behalf of people affiliated with drug trafficking organizations in Mexico.

The 140 firearms purchased by Osorio included multiple large-caliber and long-range firearms.

Osorio also admitted to harboring people who unlawfully resided in the United States to employ them at a Nevada mining company, according to the DOJ.

“Trafficking military-style firearms and ammunition to drug trafficking organizations in Mexico fuels violence, strengthens criminal networks and threatens communities on both sides of the border,” said Jonathan Sherwin, Deputy Special Agent in Charge for Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) Las Vegas.

“In the world of organized crime and drug trafficking, guns and drugs go hand-in-hand,” said David S. Olesky, Special Agent in Charge of the Drug Enforcement Administration Los Angeles Field Division, which also covers Nevada.

“Firearms trafficking networks feed the violent cartels that terrorize border communities and pump illicit drugs into our neighborhoods,” said First Assistant United States Attorney Sigal Chattah for the District of Nevada. “By cutting off this supply chain and holding this defendant accountable, we are directly disrupting the operational capabilities of these dangerous criminal organizations.”

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Mexico Arrests Former Governor for Alleged Cover-Up of 2014 Student Massacre

Authorities in Mexico arrested a former governor in connection with the cover-up of an infamous massacre where police forces kidnapped 43 education students during a protest. The police turned them over to cartel gunmen who are believed to have slaughtered them and disposed of their bodies.

The arrest took place on Wednesday afternoon in Mexico State when authorities arrested Angel Aguirre, who was the governor of Guerrero in 2014 at the time of the massacre. He is accused of helping to cover up the incident. Soon after the arrest, Mexico’s Attorney General Ernestina Godoy released a video on social media where she provided details of the case and what led authorities to move against Aguirre.

Known as the Ayotzinapa massacre, the kidnapping and murders happened in September 2014, when a group of student stole some buses to make their way to a protest. As Breitbart Texas reported, along the way, Mexican authorities shot at the buses and kidnapped the students, only to turn them over to a local cartel. The cartel gunmen then murdered the students and disposed of their bodies. The case sparked much controversy amid allegations of government cover-ups and false accounts of the students’ fate. In the 12 years since the massacre, only the remains of a handful have been located.

According to Godoy, the investigation into the case revealed that Aguirre ordered the destruction of evidence in the case that showed that Mexican police forces had been responsible for the initial kidnapping of the students. Godoy claimed that the surveillance cameras of the city hall in the town of Iguala captured the moment when police forces stopped a bus that the students had stolen and proceeded to kidnap them. During the investigation, government officials claimed there were no video recordings of the incident. The new investigation revealed that there was a video of the kidnapping.

As part of the investigation, authorities interviewed a cooperating witness who revealed that the videos from Iguala were taken by a government official and given directly to Aguirre. A second witness told authorities that during a meeting with high officials, Aguirre had ordered the destruction of any evidence that connected government officials with the kidnapping in Iguala.

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Mexican Town Set Ablaze After Military Arrests Terrorist Cartel Leader

Members of the United Cartels set fire to a town in the Mexican state of Michoacan following a military raid where authorities arrested one of the top leaders of the terrorist organization. That leader had previously been a top official within the Michoacan state police forces and still held sway over local law enforcement.

The riotous acts of destruction took place over the weekend in the town of Los Reyes and nearby communities, when cartel gunmen set up numerous blockades and torched vehicles and buildings in response to a military raid targeting their leader, Alfonoso “Poncho La Quiringa” Fernandez Magallanes. Fernandez is a known drug lord wanted by the U.S. Department of Justice, which offered a $5 million reward for his capture.

The raid took place on Saturday afternoon, when Mexican military and federal police forces arrested Fernandez and several of his close allies with Carteles Unidos. Soon after the arrest, his gunmen set up blockades, torched vehicles and buildings throughout Los Reyes and surrounding communities in an attempt to pressure Mexico’s government into releasing the man known as La Quiringa. While the tactic had worked in the past, this time, Mexico’s federal government did not budge.

Soon after, Mexico’s top security official, Omar Garcia Harfuch, announced Fernandez’s capture. On Sunday, his staff released additional information about the wanted drug lord and his organization. According to authorities, La Quiringa has been one of the leaders behind the hiring of Colombian terrorists and guerrilla fighters, as well as the use of drones to drop explosives on their rivals and military forces.

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Report: Cartel Rifles Seized in Mexican Border State Tied to U.S. Department Of State

At least four rifles seized in the Mexican border state of Tamaulipas during cartel arrests are allegedly linked to the U.S. Department of State. A report by Mexico’s El Debate revealed that the rifles were part of various weapons seized during several cartel raids since late 2004.

The Tamaulipas Attorney General’s Office is investigating the seizure, claiming the weapons are linked to the U.S. State Department’s Diplomatic Security Service. The report does not reveal if the weapons were stolen or lost. The first seizure took place during the Biden administration in Nuevo Padilla in October 2024, the second one in November 2024. The other two seizures took place during the Trump Administration, with one in March in Ciudad Victoria and one in April in Miguel Aleman. The report did not provide additional details as to the type of weapons or the specifics of each seizure.

The report by El Debate comes at a time when Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum has been trying to blame the United States government for not doing enough to stop the flow of weapons south. As Breitbart Texas has reported, Sheinbaum has been hiding behind a nationalistic rhetoric in an attempt to deal with the pressure from the Trump Administration to fight drug cartels.

Earlier this year, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the criminal indictment of Sinaloa Governor Ruben Rocha Moya and nine of his closest allies on federal drug trafficking and weapons charges for allegedly working for the Sinaloa Cartel. Rather than help with the arrest and extradition of the individuals, Sheinbaum has publicly defended Rocha Moya, who is from the same political party by claiming that there is no evidence of wrongdoing and that the U.S. government is trying to damage her political party, MORENA. As Breitbart Texas reported, Sheinbaum’s response has triggered international tensions with key members of the U.S. government, while U.S. President Donald J. Trump has publicly stated that Mexico is controlled by cartels.

Tensions have continued to escalate this year as the U.S. Department of State has revoked the visas of several MORENA politicians, including at least three sitting governors, several mayors and various other federal officials, Breitbart Texas has reported.

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Mexican State Police Carrying Out Raids on Behalf of Terrorist Cartels

Two high-ranking police officers in the Mexican State of Michoacán have been carrying out raids on behalf of the terrorist organization United Cartels. One of those officers had been investigated for his cartel ties but is now back on the job, carrying out raids and alleged abductions with complete impunity.

Breitbart News Foundation has obtained a series of photographs that appear to show Michoacan State Police officers carrying out raids on homes suspected of being used by criminal organizations that are rivals of United Cartels and their allies, including the Knights Templars. The raids are reportedly led by Commanders Marco Tulio Vertiz Rodriguez and Romualdo Albiter Rebollar. The two police leaders are allegedly working under orders of a cartel figure named Carmelo Alvarez Espinoza.

One of those raids took place this week in a rural area near the city of Apatzingán, Michoacán. In the photographs, the officers are seen pulling up to a home and raiding the property.

In response to the raids, Apatzingan has seen a series of banners posted throughout town denouncing the two police commanders for working with organized crime. The banners are addressed to Michoacan’s Governor Alfredo Ramirez Bedolla, asking him to do something. In the banners, the two police officials are accused of working with a local police chief in an attempt to use police forces to push out rival criminal organizations and regain territories that had previously been lost by the Knights Templar cartel.

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Mexican President Blames Biden-Era Policies for Rise in Cartel Violence

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum is blaming Biden-era policies of the United States government for having helped set off the fierce turf war that followed. The turf war erupted after the split between the two main factions of the Sinaloa Cartel following the arrest of the fearsome cartel boss Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada.

During her morning news conferences, Sheinbaum claimed that if the Biden administration had shared information with Mexican authorities and let them carry out the arrest, the cartel would not have split, and the violence spreading through Mexico would not have happened. The comments come at a time when tensions are high with the United States over Sheinbaum’s refusal to fight cartels. Her comments also come soon after the Mexican president announced that her government would be taking legal action against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in connection with the deaths of migrants in detention centers and during raids.

In regard to the violence in Sinaloa, Sheinbaum was referring to the 2024 kidnapping and arrest of Zambada at the hands of the Chapitos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. The operation took place in the last year of the Biden administration. As Breitbart Texas reported at the time, the leaders of Los Chapitos, who are the sons of jailed Sinaloa Cartel kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman and inherited his power, had called a meeting with El Mayo only to capture him and fly him to the United States. When the airplane landed, U.S. federal agents were waiting to arrest El Mayo, who pleaded guilty to drug trafficking charges and is awaiting sentencing later this month. The kidnapping and arrest of El Mayo sparked a fierce turf war within the Sinaloa Cartel that has led to thousands of murders, kidnappings, and forced disappearances.

The issue of El Mayo’s arrest has gained relevance in recent days after a series of leaked photographs showed how U.S. agents had been waiting for El Mayo, pointing to some coordination between Los Chapitos and U.S. law enforcement. The issue comes at a time when the Trump administration has been pressuring Sheinbaum to eradicate drug cartels, leading to heightened tensions between the two governments.

Recently, the U.S. Department of Justice delivered a heavy blow to Sheinbaum’s credibility when it announced a criminal indictment against Sinaloa’s Governor Ruben Rocha Moya and nine of his closest officials, who were the heads of the state law enforcement apparatus. As Breitbart Texas has reported, rather than help with the arrests and extraditions, Sheinbaum has used the claim of national sovereignty to refuse U.S. help in fighting cartels and has publicly defended Rocha Moya, who is from the same political party, claiming that there is no proof of wrongdoing on his part. Federal prosecutors in the United States claim that Rocha Moya worked with Los Chapitos, providing them with protection in exchange for bribes and political support.

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Mexico’s First Openly Gay Mayor Slain in Guadalajara as World Cup Highlights More Than 135,000 Disappearances and more Journalist Killings

Mexico’s hosting of the 2026 FIFA World Cup was meant to showcase national pride, soccer passion, and cultural unity before a global audience. Instead, the tournament has unfolded against the backdrop of some of the country’s deepest crises: cartel violence, forced disappearances, killings of public officials and journalists, and protests by families searching for missing loved ones.

The July 7 killing of Benjamín Medrano Quezada, Mexico’s first openly gay mayor, brought those realities into even sharper focus.

Medrano, 59, was shot and killed in Guadalajara, Jalisco, after leaving an ice cream shop in the Santa Elena de la Cruz neighborhood. According to authorities, gunmen riding a motorcycle opened fire multiple times, striking him in the head and face.

Medrano served as mayor of Fresnillo, Zacatecas—one of Mexico’s largest municipalities and a strategic corridor for drug trafficking—from 2013 to 2015 before later serving as a federal deputy. He made history as one of Mexico’s first openly gay mayors and was also known as a singer, businessman, and owner of a gay bar in Fresnillo.

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