Browsing: Sinaloa Cartel

For years, I have covered the people, organizations, and conflicts that have shaped organized crime in Mexico. This book brings that work together in one place, profiling the 50 men who had the greatest influence on the evolution of the modern Mexican drug trade. It is written for readers who want history, context, and facts—not myths or Hollywood versions of the cartel world.

El Texas, an important Los Chapitos figure in Culiacán, was killed during an operation at Paralela Parque Residencial in Infonavit Humaya. His death is another military blow against the Chapitos structure during the Sinaloa cartel civil war.

U.S. prosecutors have now charged Carlos Paez Pereda, alias Carlitos Rugrats, with narcoterrorism, tying Los Rugrats to La Mayiza, Mayito Flaco’s war machine, fentanyl routes, and the fight against Los Chapitos. The case shows Washington is no longer only chasing drugs, but the armed structures behind the Sinaloa Cartel itself.

In a brutal cartel video from Mazatlán, a captive identifies himself as Jesús Armando Chacón Patiño and claims he was sent by “El Payasín” for Mayito Flaco’s side. His statements, made under captivity, point to a failed push into the port and a public warning from Chapiza.

Ryan James Wedding, the former Olympic snowboarder turned alleged cocaine broker, stood shackled in a California courtroom and pleaded not guilty. Prosecutors say he ran a pipeline tied to the Sinaloa Cartel and ordered killings. Mexico insists he walked into the U.S. Embassy—no joint raid. Now he waits for trial.