Mexican Federal Police and elements of the Army arrested two cartel gunmen over the weekend with an arsenal of rifles, handguns, grenades, and ammunition. The duo was arrested in a stolen vehicle in southern Chihuahua.
Authorities announced the arrests in Ciudad Jiménez, located in the southeastern section of the state, approximately 135 miles from the state capital of Chihuahua. The operation was carried out by Federal Police forces who observed a reported stolen vehicle. The occupants accelerated and attempted to flee, but were intercepted by uniformed police. The men were ordered to exit the vehicle and immediately appeared armed with handguns in their waistbands.
A search of the trunk yielded 14 rifles, four handguns, and approximately 1,547 rounds of ammunition. Also discovered were three fragmentation grenades, 81 magazines, six tactical vests, six helmets, and an assortment of military-style clothing, according to local media.
The two men who remain unidentified were handed over to investigators of the judicial police.
Breitbart News reports extensively on the cartel violence in the border state of Chihuahua with most of the violence concentrated in the border city of Ciudad Juarez and the state capital. The rural, mountainous communities in the western section of the state are also affected. The violence is attributed to turf battles between El Nuevo Cártel de Juárez and the Sinaloa Cartel’s affiliated groups. Most of the violence in Ciudad Juarez is driven by the sale of street-level methamphetamine and turf wars between dealers moving product for the major cartels. Local contacts in Ciudad Jiménez recently reported that criminal groups aligned with major cartels are traveling through the municipality in large convoys and taxing local businesses for a “piso” (protection tax).
Robert Arce is a retired Phoenix Police detective with extensive experience working Mexican organized crime and street gangs. Arce has worked in the Balkans, Iraq, Haiti, and recently completed a three-year assignment in Monterrey, Mexico, working out of the Consulate for the United States Department of State, International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Program, where he was the Regional Program Manager for Northeast Mexico (Coahuila, Tamaulipas, Nuevo Leon, Durango, San Luis Potosi, Zacatecas.) You can follow him on Twitter. He can be reached at robertrarce@gmail.com