Mexican security personnel in the northern state of Sinaloa seized four clandestine methamphetamine labs which are believed connected to the Sinaloa Cartel in the past week. Since 2018, officials busted more than 25 similar labs in the state.
The Office of the Secretariat of the Mexican Navy (SEMAR) announced the seizure of four labs within the surrounding areas of Culiacán. Officials discovered 1,014 gallons of liquid methamphetamine, 774 gallons of liquid amphetamine, and a large quantity of precursor chemicals.
The raids were carried out on August 27 and 30. The four laboratories were dismantled and seized items were turned over to investigative personnel from the state prosecutor’s office.
This seizure fits in a series of large lab raids in Culiacán, which is home base for the Sinaloa Cartel. In June, security elements discovered a clandestine lab in rural Alcoyonqui, resulting in the seizure of 220 to 330 pounds of crystal methamphetamine and 1,717 gallons of precursors.
Breitbart Texas reported on multiple labs recently seized in the area. Those included a case earlier in July when security personnel discovered a plant connected to the Sinaloa Cartel. Officials estimated the haul to be worth $170 million.
In August 2018, Breitbart Texas reported on three busts totaling more than 120,000 pounds of methamphetamine. Additionally, officials carried out numerous meth, fentanyl, and heroin seizures along smuggling routes in northern Mexico.
In June 2019, the Mexican Navy also seized two tons of drugs in Puerto Libertad, Sonora, according to local reports.
This past Saturday, U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers at the Calexico East port of entry seized more than 190 pounds of methamphetamine concealed inside the fuel tank of a charter bus.
On July 19, Border Patrol agents working in the Yuma Sector seized 100 pounds of methamphetamine. The load had an estimated street value of $229,000, according to a Homeland Security release.
The availability of high grade, low priced meth is blamed for the continued cartel-related street violence in Tijuana and Juárez as low-level dealers fight for market footholds.
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.
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