Grave Betrayal: Cartel Warfare Desecrates the Dead

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Culiacán, Sinaloa—In the shadow of Culiacán’s escalating cartel war, no boundary remains untouched—not even the graves of the dead. The recent desecration of Édgar Guzmán’s cenotaph, allegedly orchestrated by the Mayiza faction loyal to “Mayito Flaco,” the son of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, has sent shockwaves through a conflict already steeped in betrayal and violence.

In a chilling audio sent to journalist Luis Chaparro, the Mayiza faction claimed responsibility for the attack, describing it as retaliation for the Guzmán family’s alleged desecration of Vicente Zambada’s family graves. The message, masked in distorted voices and laced with threats, paints a grim picture of a conflict where the lines between propaganda, retribution, and terror blur—and where neither the living nor the dead are spared from the fallout.

These exclusive revelations expose the evolving tactics of Mexico’s cartel factions as they turn graves into battlegrounds and narratives into weapons in their unrelenting pursuit of dominance.

A Message from the Mayiza: Retaliation and Threats

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Inside the Mayiza Message

Below is the translation and transcript of Luis Chaparro’s video, provided by Sol Prendido.

Luis Chaparro: Yesterday, this editorial office received a message from people who identified themselves as members of the Zambada family, members of the Mayiza mob, through a voice message and a series of images sent to this editorial office, placing responsibility for the attacks against the cenotaph of Edgar Guzmán.

The alleged members of the faction of Mayito Flaco, son of Ismael El Mayo Zambada, said that the attack was in revenge for having desecrated the tombs of their relatives. Particularly of the deceased son of Vicente Zambada.

They accused him of having destroyed the chapel with the bodies of relatives who had nothing to do with the war that the Guzmán and the Zambadas are facing today. According to what these sources say, they had gone to try to desecrate the memory of Edgar Guzmán.

The same people sent those images of the chapel where the remains of Vicente Zambada’s son are supposedly completely destroyed and smoking.

These exclusive images that you are seeing on the screen are from the attack that were caused in yesterday’s attack in Culiacán. The people who shared these images are the images that you are seeing exclusively in Pie de Nota.

These people who sent it said that it was from an attack that began on January 3 when they set fire to and ransacked the grave where Vicente Zambada’s son lay. In addition, according to what they said, on January 9 they returned again to take the urns with the ashes of other members of a family that they said doesn’t have the Zambada surname.

They also said that a month before that January 9 in December they burned a grave next to the Zambada family’s by mistake. In an attempt to damage it, the individuals who contacted this editorial team left a message claiming responsibility for the attack.

Exclusively only here in Pie de Nota I’m going to present the audio that the members of the Mayiza sent to this editorial team. I want you to listen to what he has to say.

Mayiza member:”We’re sending word asking why don’t they come all the way over here, all the way to the communities of El Salado and El Alamo, the ranches here? It seems as though those damn addicts are real good at doing their dirt over there. This goes for every coward out there. I would like for this to be on record. We’re challenging them and we will also be waiting for them out here.

They need to stop removing the dead from their graves. They also have deceased people and family members. We also know where their dead are buried. And they’re sure not going to like it if we resort to doing what they’ve done. We’re gonna get down in the same manner that they’re doing things.

I want to make a statement about the burning of the Guzmán cross. This was a direct, totally direct reprisal, they knew it. As we well know, there is an audio circulating where they were told that if they were going to continue operating dirty, because we all know that they’re dirty individuals.

They went into the grave of Vicente’s 7-year-old child and stole his toys, they burned all his toys. They stole two motorcycles that he had that were his motorcycles from when he was younger. They also stole four urns with the ashes of the family that was buried there. They wanted to steal the body, but they couldn’t, thank God.

We managed to move it from there on time. And now everyone is saying that no one should mess with the dead. But the truth is that we’ve never done such a thing. They’re the ones who first started messing with the dead. I don’t know if you remember this. And now they want to go around burning the graves of innocent little children. So, like I said, these sons of bitches.

There were audios circulating, I don’t know if you heard them. Locals here are saying that they’re going to start abducting innocent families, women, and children. They also have families and we were more than willing to negotiate that. But as you can see, they’re a bunch of cheap fucks and pigs, that’s what they are.

As I said, yes, this is something direct against them and everything that goes with that. They gambled on something and it didn’t work out the way they wanted, by taking Mayo Zambada to the United States, believing that there was no power here.

They are realizing, I think that society is also realizing who these people are. We’ve become a state worse than Tamaulipas. I just wanted you to know this. We sent you the videos and the photos. These events more or less happened from January 3 to January 8. There were three incidents in which the sons of bitches broke into the child’s grave. We had to pay out of our own pocket for this.

And as long as they continue doing their affairs we will do the same in return. On our end we don’t mess with innocent people. You see what happened with the children. They look like dumbasses all panicked and shit, they don’t even know how to use rifles, those filthy people. That’s how things currently are.

This narco governor that we have wants everyone to think that everything is fine. That everyone lives in harmony here in Culiacán and Mazatlán. But the truth is that Mazatlán is also turning into the same thing. All the people who follow him should realize who are the ones that are causing the chaos. That’s the only way that these bastards are going to end”.

Luis Chaparro: There you have it, these people who communicated with me sent this message to Pie de Nota.

They foresee more violence, they foresee continuing with the attacks. They also placed blame for the attack on the cenotaph.

I want to see if we can show the images of the chapel again because they assure and affirm that the attack on the cenotaph of Edgar Guzmán was a consequence.

It was a response to what they did in the chapel of the son of Vicente Zambada, one of the sons of Ismael El Mayo Zambada.

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Mica’s Analysis

The irony in the Mayiza faction’s message is almost too rich to ignore. In an audio sent to journalist Luis Chaparro, a distorted voice—masked like a member of a terrorist group railing against imperialism—takes credit for the desecration of Édgar Guzmán’s cenotaph. While bold enough to claim responsibility, their anonymity underscores the theatrical deflection that cartels have perfected over the years.

Blame, as always, is laid squarely on their enemies. They frame their actions as a necessary retaliation for the Guzmán faction’s alleged desecration of Vicente Zambada’s family graves. They point to burnt chapels, looted urns, and even the stolen toys of a child buried long ago. But this isn’t about retribution or honor—it’s about propaganda, dominance, and ensuring their side of the story drowns out any other.

Claiming righteous vengeance anonymously only underscores the absurdity of the cartel narrative. It’s an attempt to justify terror while cloaking themselves in a distorted sense of morality. Yet, beneath the words and theatrics, the reality remains simple: in this war, no target is sacred—not the living, not the dead.