'They are sending a clear message... that THEY rule Mexico': Terrifying footage shows CONVOY of Jalisco drug cartel 'soldiers' waving military-grade weapons next to armored trucks and shouting the name of their leader 'Mencho'
Terrifying footage shows dozens of uniformed gunmen posing with military-grade weapons near armored pickup trucks emblazoned with the initials of the Jalisco drug cartel in Mexico as the country's top security officials launch an investigation into the video.
In what appears to be a show of power, several dozen masked men are heard shouting they are 'people of Mencho,' a nickname used by Jalisco New Generation Cartel boss Nemesio Oseguera.
Almost all of the uniformed men wearing bulletproof vests wield assault rifles, and some appear to have belt-fed machine guns or .50 caliber sniper rifles.
Many of the trucks in a column of about 20 vehicles parked on a dirt road have improvised gun turrets or plate-steel armor welded onto them.
Terrifying footage shows dozens of uniformed gunmen posing with military-grade weapons near armored pickup trucks emblazoned with the initials of the Jalisco drug cartel in Mexico as the country's top security officials launch an investigation into the video
Almost all of the uniformed men wearing bulletproof vests wield assault rifles, and some appear to have belt-fed machine guns or .50 caliber sniper rifles
In what appears to be a show of power, the masked men are heard shouting they are 'people of Mencho,' a nickname used by Jalisco New Generation Cartel boss Nemesio Oseguera (pictured)
Mexico's top security official, Alfonso Durazo, wrote Saturday that the video is being analyzed to confirm whether it is authentic and when it was made.
Durazo wrote in his Twitter account that 'there is no criminal group that has the capacity to successfully defy federal security forces, and much less with this staged event'.
The video was posted on social media sites Thursday, which coincided with President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador's visit to the states of Guanajuato, Jalisco and Colima, some of the cartel's strongholds.
'They are sending a clear message... that they basically rule Mexico, not Lopez Obrador,' said Mike Vigil, a former chief of international operations for the US Drug Enforcement Administration.
A spokesman for Lopez Obrador's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment. López Obrador met Thursday with Jalisco Gov Enrique Alfaro to discuss security issues.
'In the face of threats, intimidations, we say to Governor Alfaro that he is not alone, that we are with him in facing the challenge of crime,' López Obrador said.
'This problem cannot be solved with massacres. It is going to be done more with intelligence than force,' said López Obrador.
The president defended his policy of avoiding confrontation with the cartels.
He prefers to address social problems like poverty and unemployment that he says contribute to crime.
Many of the trucks in a column of about 20 vehicles parked on a dirt road have improvised gun turrets or plate-steel armor welded onto them
Mexico's top security official, Alfonso Durazo, wrote Saturday that the video is being analyzed to confirm whether it is authentic and when it was made
The video's release coincided with President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador's visit to Guanajuato, Jalisco and Colima. Last week, Lopez Obrador defended his policy of 'hugs, not bullets' as his approach to avoid confrontations with the cartels
But the strategy, branded by Lopez Obrador as one of 'hugs, not bullets,' has emboldened criminal groups, many security analysts say.
The president's approach 'has only led these cartels to operate with more impunity,' Vigil said.
It was unclear when the video had been filmed, but it appeared to be authentic, Vigil said.
The Jalisco cartel is regarded as Mexico's strongest gang, along with the Sinaloa Cartel formerly led by jailed kingpin Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman.
It is often credited with infiltrating poorly paid and trained police departments across the country to protect its wide-ranging criminal rackets.
The cartel based in the central state of Jalisco has spread across Mexico and increasingly has posed direct challenges to the government.
Mexico City's police chief, Omar GarcÃa Harfuch, blamed the cartel for an elaborately planned attempt on his life last month - an ambush on the capital's most famous boulevard.
The Jalisco cartel operates in 24 of 32 states in Mexico and has shipped cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and fentanyl-laced heroin to the United States.
The cartel, is known to be in control of between one-third and two-thirds of the US drug market.
Post a Comment