[42] The cartel is primarily involved in the smuggling and distribution of Colombian cocaine, Mexican marijuana, methamphetamine and Mexican and Southeast Asian heroin into the United States. From there it is smuggled north to Mexico and later into the U.S.[44] Other shipments of cocaine are believed to originate in Colombia from Cali and Medellín drug-trafficking groups from which the Sinaloa Cartel handle transportation across the U.S. border to distribution cells in Arizona, California, Illinois, Texas, New York, and Washington state. To accomplish this task he used every means available: Boeing 747 cargo aircraft, narco submarines, container ships, go-fast boats, fishing vessels, buses, rail cars, tractor trailers and automobiles. The Sinaloa Cartel has been waging a war against the Tijuana Cartel (Arellano-Félix Organization) over the Tijuana smuggling route to the border city of San Diego, California. It was evidence that the cartel had ventured into new markets responding to the needs of customers. Los Negros have been known to employ gangs such as the Mara Salvatrucha to carry out murders and other illegal activities. After the breakaway of the Beltran Leyva Organization (BLO) in 2008, El Chapo became the most visible head of the Sinaloa Cartel, although he was joined at the top table by Ismael Zambada Garcia, alias “El Mayo,” and Juan Jose Esparragoza Moreno, alias “El Azul.” El Azul reportedly died of a heart attack in June 2014, although there are rumors that he is still alive and well. The latter was arrested by the Mexican Army in March 2009 and handed over to the United States justice in February 2010. [30] He also pioneered the use of aircraft to smuggle drugs to the United States.[31]. Top News Videos for sinaloa cartel members. [39] With the arrest of Joaquín Guzmán Loera, Ismael Zambada will most likely assume leadership of the Sinaloa Cartel. [36], In retaliation, the Tijuana Cartel attempted to set up Guzmán at Guadalajara airport on 24 May 1993. In particular, the report claimed the government was helping the Sinaloa Cartel to take control of the Juarez Valley area and destroy other cartels, especially the Juarez Cartel. [104] Such allegations were confirmed by court documents obtained by El Universal during their investigation of collaboration with top officials from the Sinaloa cartel. [23] According to the National Drug Intelligence Center, within the U.S. the Sinaloa Cartel is primarily involved in the distribution of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, cannabis and MDMA. [88][89], Similar to the "Taj Mahal" of drug tunnels discovered on Otay Mesa in 1993,[82] the 2006 drug "super tunnel" was traced back to the Sinaloa Cartel. The latter due to the coast of Mexico from which it originated. Calls for his extradition to the United States started just hours after his arrest. After his capture, the special brigade was commanded by Luis Eduardo Zambada aka “El Venado”. Nowadays Mexican cartels are the most powerful in the world and the Sinaloa Cartel is one of them. The report also alleged, with support from an anthropologist who studies drug trafficking, that data on the low arrest rate of Sinaloa Cartel members (compared to other groups) was evidence of favoritism on the part of the authorities. Following the 2004 assassination of journalist Roberto Javier Mora García from El Mañana newspaper, much of the local media has been cautious about their reporting of the fighting. Learn more about the Sinaloa cartel. It relies on eight "plaza" bosses, leaders of a specific geographic region along the corridor, to coordinate, direct, and support the flow of narcotics north into the United States. [12][3] The "Federation" was partially splintered when the Beltrán-Leyva brothers broke apart from the Sinaloa Cartel. [60], The Sinaloa Cartel has operations in the Philippines as a trans-shipment point for drugs smuggled into the United States. In an attempt to resolve the dispute and remove the ejidatarios from the privatized Tijuana airport, the Mexican government established a value on the expropriated 320 hectares (790 acres) at $1.2 million pesos ($125,560 U.S. dollars in 1999) while the ejidatarios of the former Ejido Tampico taking into account the increase in property values from 1970 to 1999 and the privatization of the Tijuana airport established a commercial value on their lost land at $2.8 billion pesos ($294 million U.S. dollars). At one time it was headed by Joaquin Guzman Loera, known as El Chapo. [99][100] On 21 June 2017, Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán's "girlfriend" and former legislator of the state of Sinaloa, Lucero Guadalupe Sánchez López, was arrested at the Tijuana airport's Cross Border Xpress by CBP (U.S. Customs and Border Protection) officers as she crossed into the U.S. She was charged with drug conspiracy and money laundering, and had been with Joaquín Guzmán when he escaped capture in 2014. El Chapo, El Azul and El Mayo have all maintained their own separate but cooperating organiz… After the extradition of Chapo Guzmán, one of his trusted men, Dámaso López aka El Licenciado, tried to assume the leadership, entering into war against the children of El Chapo, however, everything ended when he was captured on May 2, 2017. The federal police 375 miles unfortunate shooting was part of the Sinaloa Cartel is one of ``. Said to be the first generation of major Mexican drug trafficking corridor,. 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