Possible Turf War Emerges with Killing of Sinaloa Cartel Lieutenant

The weekend kidnapping, torture, and murder of a top Sinaloa Cartel lieutenant put the public on edge as the killing could signal the start of a new turf war following the recent shakeup of the criminal organization.

Over the weekend, authorities in the community of La Elota, just south of Culiacan, found the bodies of Martin “El Tano” Garcia Corrales and two of his allies. The bodies were bound and showed signs of torture, Mexico’s Proceso reported.

The U.S. Department of Justice offered a $4 million reward for Garcia Corrales. He is listed as a top trafficker of methamphetamine and fentanyl, who was also tied to the weapons trade on behalf of El Mayo’s faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. He was a close ally of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, leading to speculation about his killing being tied to a brewing turf war following the capture of El Mayo, presumably at the hands of the Chapitos faction of the cartel.

As Breitbart Texas reported, on July 25, U.S. authorities arrested El Mayo after he landed in a plane at a small private airport in New Mexico, just west of El Paso. At the time, authorities also arrested Joaquin Guzman Lopez, a son of jailed Sinaloa kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman. Guzman Lopez is one of the four brothers who inherited their father’s drug business and have become known as Los Chapitos. In the aftermath of the arrest, multiple reports from authorities and other sources point to Los Chapitos having kidnapped El Mayo and helped turn him over to U.S. authorities. Various reports claim that this is tied in part to brewing bad blood by Los Chapitos, who blame El Mayo for their father’s arrest and a possible deal with U.S. authorities.

In the weeks after the arrest of El Mayo, authorities in Sinaloa have been bracing for a war between Sinaloa Cartel forces loyal to El Mayo and Los Chapitos.  It remains unclear if the weekend killings could signify the start of that turf war.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.