Tag: mexico

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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Another Mayor Killed in Lawless Mexico – Ruling Party Politician Had Survived a Previous Assassination Attempt

Mayor Valentin Lavin was gunned down inside the city hall.

The security situation in Mexico continues to deteriorate, with even elected officials hunted down and killed at an alarming rate.

Since Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum took office back in October 2024, at least 14 sitting mayors have been assassinated.

Of those, three mayors were killed just in the first half of 2026.

In the latest chapter of this horrific saga, a small-town mayor in central Mexico was shot dead inside the town hall after surviving a previous assassination attempt.

CBS News reported:

“The town of Temoac is located in the state of Morelos, a region close to Mexico City where several drug cartels are active.

Mayor Valentin Lavin, who was allied to President Claudia Sheinbaum’s leftist party, had already survived an armed attack in January, according to local media reports.”

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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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Mexican Government Delays Biometric Registration Deadline After Massive Public Resistance

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum has announced an extension to a controversial deadline that required Mexican citizens and foreign residents to register their phone lines with their identification. The move comes after less than half of the country signed up to register their phone lines.

On Thursday morning, Mexico’s Telecommunications Regulatory Commission (CRT) announced a staggered extension for citizens to register their mobile phone lines with their identification. This controversial requirement has received pushback and resistance from the Mexican population, many of whom question how their data will be stored and used.

According to the announcement, prepaid phone lines that have not yet been linked to an identity will now have until between August and December to complete the process, with the deadline based on the last digit of the phone number. The new policy states that after the deadline expires, telephone companies will suspend service to non-compliant lines within 72 hours.

“For the safety of all, every telephone number must be registered in the name of one person, in order to eliminate the anonymity that has allowed crime such as fraud or extortion,” the press release reads. “With this measure, Mexico will cease to be one of the few countries that allowed the acquisition of a SIM card without identification, and will join the international practice currently in place in 166 countries.”

Calls for a deadline extension have increased in recent weeks, as many critics believe the government did not adequately prepare the public for the change. In late May, Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim called for an extension because the process was “very complicated” and progressing slowly.

With the extension of the deadline, the Mexican government and telecom companies are hoping extra time is all that will be necessary to convince more than 50 million people to comply with the mandate. This may prove more challenging than they anticipated in a country well known for mistrust of official institutions.

The requirement to link a person’s ID with their phone line is a fairly new development in Mexico—one of the few places in the world where individuals could still purchase and use SIM cards in cellphones without registering a name or showing some form of identification. All of that changed in July 2025 when several new laws took effect that compel the population to register for a biometric program required to access many services, including phone and internet access. Phone users were originally instructed to register their phone line with their telecommunications provider before June 30, 2026, or face interruption of service. This would force businesses selling these services to check a customer’s CURP before purchase.

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Journalist Murdered in Mexico Received Threats from Law Enforcement

A group of gunmen shot and killed a journalist in Mexico. The crime comes just days after a female journalist was kidnapped in the same state of Veracruz. The attack is even more alarming as the murdered journalist was under government protection after having received threats from law enforcement.

The murder took place early Thursday morning when Luis Angel Lopez Valdez traveled along a busy avenue in Poza Rica, Veracruz. A group of gunmen pulled up alongside him and opened fire before speeding away. By the time authorities responded, Lopez was already dead.

The journalist was a crime reporter for Vanguardia Newspaper. He also ran his own crime blog and served as a regional director for the first-aid organization Amber Cross. According to Mexico’s Zeta magazine, Lopez was under government protection after having been the target of threats from alleged law enforcement officials in connection with his work as a journalist.

As Breitbart Texas reported, Veracruz is one of the deadliest places in Mexico for journalists due to the impunity with which cartels operate in that state. Those cartels are often protected by government officials at the highest levels who have a long history of looking the other way in exchange for bribes and political support.

The murder of Lopez comes days after a group of gunmen stormed into a home in rural Veracruz and kidnapped Roxana Guzman, a female journalist who had exposed widespread cartel corruption in the region. Her fate remains unknown.

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Mexican Authorities Make Gruesome Discovery Outside Iran’s World Cup Training Camp

Mexican authorities discovered a decomposing body stuffed inside the trunk of an abandoned vehicle just yards from where Iran’s national soccer team is preparing for the 2026 World Cup.

The grim discovery was made Friday in a supermarket parking lot across from Caliente Stadium in Tijuana, where Iran has established its training base ahead of upcoming matches in the United States.

According to local authorities, residents had complained for days about a foul odor coming from a gray Toyota SUV parked in the lot.

When officers inspected the vehicle, they found a body wrapped in a black bag inside the trunk.

“Upon inspecting the vehicle, they found a person wrapped in a black bag in the trunk, showing signs of violence,” a spokesman for the Tijuana prosecutor’s office said.

Officials have not released the identity of the victim.

Forensic investigators were seen examining the SUV and collecting evidence from the scene before removing the body.

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Mexico’s Former President Accused of Crimes Against Humanity in International Court

Mexico’s former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador stands accused of crimes against humanity in a complaint filed by a rival political party. The complaint blames him as the root cause of the partnership between Mexico’s government and cartels, which led to more than 200,000 deaths and 150,000 forced disappearances, as well as several other crimes under his watch.

The complaint was not filed in a Mexican court, but in the International Criminal Court (ICC) in The Hague by Mexico’s National Action Party (PAN). In a prepared statement, the party claims that during López Obrador’s term from 2018 to 2024, Mexico’s government willingly entered into a narco-alliance with drug cartels that strengthened them to such levels that they replaced the government in many areas.

The statement points to states like Tamaulipas, Sinaloa, and Michoacan where drug cartels are able to operate with almost complete impunity. The PAN also mentioned the recent cases of three Mexican state governors with AMLO’s MORENA party who have been linked to drug cartels.

As Breitbart Texas reported, the most recent case was of Tamaulipas governor Americo Villarreal and Sonora’s Governor Alfonso Durazo who had their visas revoked by the U.S. Department of State for ties to drug cartels. The first case is that of Sinaloa’s Ruben Rocha Moya, who in recent weeks was criminally indicted along with nine of his allies by the U.S. Department of Justice on drug trafficking charges and is a wanted fugitive, even though Mexico’s government has moved to protect him while publicly claiming that there is no evidence of wrongdoing against him or other members of the MORENA party.

The PAN claimed they chose an international court because Mexico’s MORENA-controlled justice system and the courts could no longer be trusted.

In response to the allegation, Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum, who is Lopez Obrador’s protegee and successor, claimed that the rival political party had no credibility. She is the same politician that U.S. President Donald J. Trump has publicly mocked several times, claiming that she is too afraid of cartels to act against them. In the past, the White House has publicly accused Mexico’s government of having an “intolerable relationship” with cartels.

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Mexican President Tells U.S. Ambassador to Butt Out Regarding Narco-Politicians

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum lashed out against U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson, telling him to butt out of her country’s domestic issues. The comment came in response to Johnson’s earlier statement that the fight against cartels was not political. The scuffle comes at a time of great tension between both countries, as Sheinbaum has been fiercely

In her most recent morning news conference, Sheinbaum criticized Johnson, claiming that he needed to stay in his lane and that Mexico’s issues were for Mexicans to handle.

Sheinbaum’s rebuke came after Johnson posted on social media a message claiming that the fight against cartels should unite and not divide the people on both sides of the border. Johnson added that turning the fight against cartels into a political dispute is a wasted opportunity.

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