With complete impunity, gunmen published videos on social media of a clandestine airstrip used by the Sinaloa Cartel. The runway is believed to be in the state of Durango — which is safe turf for the cartel with regard to rivals and authorities.
In a video that was first shared on TikTok and then reposted on Twitter and others, gunmen can be seen guarding a clandestine airstrip as a small plane lands.
A social media account claimed to have worked with another, @AuroraIntel, to track down where the video was filmed.
The video does not reveal which cell of the Sinaloa Cartel was behind the video. However, in recent years, members have shared glimpses of their lifestyle and operations through social media as a way to push into mainstream culture.
@omararellano976 #pistasclandestinas #avionetas #temblornorteño ♬ Dos Avionetas – Temblor Norteño
The first video appears to be taken by a gunman riding in the back of a pickup and holding a machine gun believed to be an M249. The M249 is used by the U.S. military and is capable of a high rate of automatic fire — not something that is readily available in the civilian market. The Sinaloa Cartel has a long history of acquiring high-powered weapons capable of outgunning rivals.
The use of clandestine airstrips continues to be one of the most popular methods for cartels to move large quantities of cocaine from Central and South America. The practice became common in the 1980s and 1990s when then-Juarez Cartel leader Amado Carrilo Fuentes (aka Lord of the Skies) used large and small airplanes to move cocaine into his turf.
Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to Mexico City and the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo León to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. The writers would face certain death at the hands of the various cartels that operate in those areas including the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas if a pseudonym were not used. Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles are published in both English and in their original Spanish. This article was written by “C.P.. Mireles” from Tamaulipas.