“Char” for Borderland Beat
This article was translated and reposted from RADIOFÓRMULA
The US government has identified at least four criminal organizations operating on behalf of Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán’s sons in northern Mexico to date.
BY; ÓSCAR SOLORIO
The criminal group known as Los Chapitos is richer, more powerful and bloodthirsty than the Sinaloa Cartel, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), however, the power they have achieved has also been achieved thanks to the involvement of other cartels.
The US government has identified at least four criminal organizations operating on behalf of Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman’s sons in northern Mexico so far.
Los Ninis, Los Pelones, Los Cazadores, Los Salazar are the armed arms of the criminal organization led by Ivan Archivaldo and Jesus Alfredo Guzman Salazar, sons of “El Chapo”.
According to DEA investigations, Los Ninis is the closest criminal group to Los Chapitos, which has been characterized by having among its ranks young men between 20 and 35 years of age with a violent profile.
The leaders of Los Ninis are Oscar Noé Medina González, alias “El Panu”, Néstor Isidro Pérez Salas, known in the criminal world as “El Nini”, and Jorge Humberto Figueroa Benítez, who is known as “El 27”.
US authorities are offering a US$3 million reward for information on the whereabouts of “El Panu” and US$4 million for information on the location of “El Nini”.
The role of Los Ninis in the 2019 ‘Culiacanazo’.
According to military reports obtained after the hacking of the Secretariat of National Defense (Sedena) by the Guacamaya collective, Los Ninis confronted the Armed Forces in the failed operation known as “Culiacanazo” of 2019, which consisted of the first arrest and immediate release of Ovidio Guzmán López, the leader of Los Chapitos who was recently extradited to the United States after his second arrest in January of this year.
On the other hand, Los Salazar, founded by Adán Salazar Zamorano, alias “Don Adán”, approximately in 2005, maintain a battle in Sonora with the La Plaza Cartel, linked to the Caborca Cartel, which was founded by Rafael Caro Quintero, and in Baja California with the Los Rusos cell, which works for Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, the top leader of the Sinaloa Cartel.
With respect to Los Pelones and Los Cazadores, both criminal groups have ensured that Los Chapitos maintain their power in Sonora, preventing the expansion of the Caborca Cartel in Sonora. According to local press reports, Los Pelones operate in the municipalities of San Luis Río Colorado, Sonoyta, Caborca and Pitiquito, while Los Cazadores operate in Altamar.
