The War for Zacatecas

ZACATECAS — According to individuals inside the Cabrera organization, the long-running war for Zacatecas has allegedly reached its end. After nearly six years of conflict, these insiders claim that around 90 percent of the state is now under the influence of the Olegariza MZ structure, with only a few ranches near Jalisco and Villanueva still being contested.

If accurate, this would represent a major strategic gain for the Cabreras, who have methodically expanded their influence through alliances, truces, and targeted operations. The same sources allege that Chihuahua is now the next objective — part of a broader plan to consolidate more of northern Mexico.

“Every new pact the Cabreras make helps them spread farther,” one individual close to the group said. “They’re expanding through order and structure, not chaos.”

While these claims come from within the Cabrera network and have not been independently verified, the narrative aligns with the group’s known strategy of advancing through negotiations rather than prolonged warfare. Local authorities have not issued public confirmation regarding current territorial control.

Beneath the Surface

From my own time speaking directly with CJNG operators, I can tell you that Mencho doesn’t retreat — and that makes the Cabrera narrative worth viewing with skepticism.

CJNG doesn’t vanish; it repositions. The real question is whether they’ve quietly shifted their resources north into Durango, or even farther — aligning with their allies in Juárez, where presence and logistics already overlap with regional operators.

The truth likely lies somewhere between both accounts. What’s clear is that Zacatecas remains contested ground, shaped as much by negotiated silence as by open confrontation.