US Announces Next Phase Against The Sinaloa Cartel; They’re Going After The Plaza Chief In Sonora.

Mica for cartelinsider.com

Authorities in the United States announced the deployment of an operation they consider the “next phase” against the Sinaloa Cartel, as announced in a press conference from Nogales, Arizona, the Plaza Spike Operation against criminal groups linked to fentanyl.

Such operation plans to reveal the names of the so-called “plaza chiefs”, that is, those who maintain control of an area.

It is in this context that US authorities announced that their first objective is Sergio Valenzuela Valenzuela, aka El Gio, and/or Gigio, whom they accuse of being a criminal leader in Nogales, Sonora.

“We are entering the next phase of our fight against fentanyl: one in which we will pursue the leaders of the plazas, whose organizations are responsible for virtually everything that is smuggled into the United States,” read a statement from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) on Wednesday, April 10th.

With the announced operation, the US will affect the criminal groups located in the border area.

They also highlighted that this subject will not be the last of the plaza bosses to be pursued. According to authorities, from the area where El Gigio operates, shipments of fentanyl commonly leave and are intercepted by border agents.

It should be noted that Sergio Valenzuela appears accused of operating under the orders of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, the latter of whom is identified as the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel.

According to documents from the US Department of Justice, El Gio would be a man responsible for leading a criminal cell dedicated to trafficking various illicit substances, including fentanyl, which is why he is linked to a “drug poly-smuggling organization”.

This individual would be approximately 55 years old and in previous actions, he has been sanctioned by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the Department of the Treasury. In 2021, he was identified as a subject who provided financial or technological support to the Sinaloa Cartel.

The right hand of El Gigio is a man identified as Leonardo Pineda Armenta, alias The 20, and his criminal group has at least six plaza bosses, according to documents from the OFAC. Apparently, Sergio Valenzuela would be responsible for supervising the Nogales corridor.

In September 2018, Yiyo was accused before the Southern District Court of California on three counts of marijuana trafficking.

In a document shared by the US government in 2013, an individual named Yiyo was mentioned. In this document, he was identified by Felipe de Jesús Sosa Canizales.

Even though the actions of US authorities are now focused against Sergio Valenzuela Valenzuela, some records show various criminal groups linked to the Sinaloa Cartel operating in Sonora.

One of these structures is identified as The Demons, which would also be related to Ismael Zambada. In mid-March, a man presumed to be linked to the criminal group was captured.

But in Sonora, armed branches of Los Chapitos have also been identified, the latter being a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel led by the sons of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. For example, in October of last year, Lamadrid “S”, alias El Delta, was captured, who was identified as a suspected member of Los Paredes, a cell operating in Sonora.

Similarly, there are Los Pelones, a group linked to Los Chapitos. The environment is complex due to the reported presence of the Caborca Cartel, the latter created by Rafael Caro Quintero and a rival structure of the sons of Guzmán Loera.

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Mica

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