"Narcomappingmx" for Borderland Beat
Note: "Narcomappingmx" tracked narco messages from Spring 2021 (January 1 - March 31, 2021). This report includes an overview of the different types of narco messages, notable events where they were found, and a trend and analysis to help explain the criminal landscape.
Abstract
Scope and Purpose: Mexico is engaged in a brutally violent and seemingly
futile internal war. Last year several dozen organized crime groups ended around
40,000 lives as they battled each other for control of the nation's highly lucrative
smuggling routes into the United States. By all metrics, this year is on track to be
the bloodiest yet. The escalating violence is marked by mothers posting signs
begging for the safe return of their kidnapped daughters, and fathers who
desperately hope to find pieces of their missing sons in the overflowing morgues.
This war is isolated from the rest of the world, who enjoy the endless supply of
cocaine and fentanyl. This project aims to gain a deeper understanding of the
organized crime issue in Mexico by cataloguing the messages cartels leave behind
which provide valuable insights into Mexico’s existential struggle.
Methods: Through open-source research in the Mexican press, this project aims
to provide a comprehensive data set detailing the story of the drug war through
narcomantas (narcobanners). News articles, social media posts, and government reports with
mentions of narcomantas are collected and catalogued, organized by important
features such as the group involved or location.
Categorizing and tracking narcomantas is extremely important for
understanding how cartels operate. They reveal useful information
such as their commanders, rivals, or markets they are involved in.
Through keeping a database of narcomantas, we can interpret and
research their patterns based on the clues they leave behind.
Results: The Narcomantas Spring Report found 117 narcomantas across 22
states in Mexico, signed by 32 unique groups. Targets of threats ranged from
rival cartels, to Attorney generals. These purposes of these narcomantas are
divided into six categories: Threats, Accusations, Recruiting, Introduction, Help,
and Bounties. All categories were represented in this data set.
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Example of a narcomanta |
What are Narcomantas?
Narcomantas, narco letreros, or narcomensajes, are
banners left behind by members of organised crime groups
to send messages to rivals, the government, or everyday
people. Narcomantas are commonly displayed in public
places, such as bridges, town centers, and highways.
Narcomantas can be a rudimentary form of propaganda,
often accompanied by bodies of rivals.
Types of Data Collected
The narcomantas data set for Quarter 1 of 2021 contains the Date the narcomanta was
placed, the Municipality and State where it was found, group or individual
Attribution, Source Date of article, Source Name, Source URL, Category,
Target, and Body.
Date: This is the date the article or source claims the narcomanta was placed. If the
source does not indicate this, this cell will be the same as the Source Date.
Municipality: The municipality where the narcomanta was found.
State: The state where the Municipality is located.
Attribution: Narcomantas often are signed by the criminal group or individual who
left them. Sometimes the name is censored by the news article or law enforcement
who found it. In cases where there is no name listed, the name is withheld, or the
manta contains no name, the ‘Attribution’ column will contain “Unknown”.
If there is both a cartel and cell name, we only record the cartel name. For example,
“Cartel del Golfo - Grupo Espartanos” is recorded just as “Cártel del Golfo”.
Source Name: The site or account where the article was published.
Source URL: The link to the article or post.
Category: Narcomantas are categorized as one of the following: Threat, Accuse,
Recruit, Request Help, Introduce, Bounty, and Unknown.
Target: Narcomantas will often contain the name of the target entity. This is useful
for understanding dynamics between criminal groups - which groups are allied,
feuding, or engaged in a stalemate.
Body: Whether the narcomanta was found with a dead body.
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Sources cited for this report |
Different Types of Narcomantas
Every narcomanta is left for a reason. Some are intended simply to frighten off rivals,
while others aim to influence public perception of a group. It is important to categorize
narcomantas by their intention, or type, in order to understand how cartels aim to
communicate. If we understand the purpose of a narcomanta, we can better understand
and research their inner workings.
(2.1) Threats
Threat narcomantas are the most common type of narcomanta, making up 64% of the
total found this quarter.
A common mantra is “this will happen to those who” oppose us, sell drugs, extort the
locals, etc.
Threat mantas are often found in the midst of turf wars. Defenders of a plaza aim to
scare off the incumbent, or newcomers will use them to frighten those who engage in
business with the home cartel.
An example of this was the string of attacks on tire shops
``vulcanizadoras'' in Guanajuato, which were being used to sell drugs and illegally
stolen gasoline for the Cartel Santa Rosa de Lima (CSRL). The attackers, the Cartel
Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), intended to scare the CSRL’s income streams,
limiting their ability to defend their claim to the state.
“THIS WILL HAPPEN TO ALL THE ASSHOLES
WHO CONTINUE BELIEVING IN THE FILTH OF EL
MARRO AND ARE HIS HALCONES OR SELLING
BLUE JELLY.
CORDIALLY: GRUPO ELITE CJNG”
May 27, 2020, Salamanca, Guanajuato. Photo from BlogDelNarco. Left on a sidewalk next to the
bagged pieces of an accused rival drug dealer's body.
(2.2) Accusations
Cartels will often leave banners accusing the government of supporting their
rival. Often they will name specific police officers or politicians who they allege
are on the enemy payroll.
"ROBERTO MADRAZO, MANUEL ANDRADE, ANDRES GRANIER,
USING THE GOVERNMENT AND THE PJE, SSP, FOR MANY YEARS
HAVE PROTECTED PONCIANO VAZQUEZ, AN ASSASSIN FOR THE
MAFIA AND CONTINUE PROTECTING THEIR PARTNER MANUAL
ORDONEZ, AND PEOPLE OF CHAPO, MAYO, NACHO, ETC."
Villahermosa, Tabasco. August 29, 2008. Image from ElSiglodeTorreon.
This narcomanta from the Felipe Calderon era of the Drug War (2006 - 2012)
alleges that various Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) politicians, the
Secretariat of Public Security, and the Justice Department were colluding to
provide protection for the several factions of the Sinaloa Cartel.
Later on in 2013, one of the politicians named, Andres Granier, would be arrested
on charges of corruption, money laundering, and embezzlement of public funds.
(2.3) Recruiting
This narcomanta was hung over a bridge in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas in April of 2008.
“The Operations Group Los Zetas wants you, military or ex military. We
offer a good salary, food, and will take care of your family. You will no
longer be mistreated and will no longer go hungry. We won’t give you
Maruchan (packaged noodles) to eat.”
Photo from Nacion.
This narcomanta from the late 2000s was emblematic of propaganda efforts by Los
Zetas which focused on drawing in police officers and members of the Mexican armed
forces, many of whom were easily won over by drastically better wages and opportunity
for career progression.
(2.4) Introduction
Cartels will often announce their entry into a plaza through narcomantas. These
narcomantas may contain self identification, (EG. “We are CJNG”) warnings for current
criminal actors and security forces (EG. “WE ARE COMING FOR ALL THE
KIDNAPPERS), establishment of new rules (EG. “Stay inside past 10 PM or be
considered an enemy”)
Narcomantas announcing introduction can be precursors to violence within the region
they are posted in. New criminal groups will have to defeat the defending cartel, often
resulting in a bloody turf war.
“CALVILLO HAS AN OWNER AND IT IS CJNG. WE ARE COMING
FOR ALL THE KIDNAPPERS, EXTORTIONISTS, RATS AND
GRASSHOPPERS (traitors)...WE REITERATE THAT WE RESPECT THE PEOPLE. AND TO THE
GOVERNMENT…
FALL IN LINE OR WE WILL MAKE YOU FALL IN LINE”
July 26, 2020. Calvillo, Aguascalientes. Photo from La Verdad del Centro.
(2.5) Help
Help messages are often focused on gaining government attention to a cause. These
messages were most commonly employed by various “autodefensas” in Michoacan and
other Central Mexican states.
(2.6) Bounties
Bounties are very rare, but as they have a distinct focus, they merit their own category.
There has been only one bounty recorded so far this spring, where a local group called
“Independientes Unidos” identified several rivals to the public and offered rewards for
information.
“We are an independant
group of drug dealers who
have joined together to
stand against the filthy
Alemanes and Gulf who
want to take control of the
Capital of San Luis Potosi
and the surrounding area.
Who ever of ers useful and
true information about the location of this trash will get between $50,000
to $500,000 pesos as a reward and as for Alfredo Aleman Narvaez, alias El
Comandante Alemán, we want the son of a bitch dead or alive, for being the
primary source of all violence in the capital.”
San Luis Potosi, San Luis Potosi. February 16, 2021. Photo and text from BlogDelNarco.
Notable Narcomantas
(3.1) Deaths of 3 FGR AgentsAt 6 PM on Friday of March 19, 2021, an anonymous phone call led Guanajuato city
police to Campuzano, a small remote town in rural Guanajuato. Police officers found the
tortured bodies of three FGR (Attorney General’s Office) agents inside an abandoned
van.
Written on the window was “Esto nos pasa por extorsionar”, “This happened
to us for extorting”.
This event adds to the trend of numerous murders of police officers in the state, only
behind Estado de México.
Guanajuato is currently caught in the middle of a bloody and divisive war between a
local organized crime group, the Cartel Santa Rosa de Lima (CSRL), and two national
drug trafficking organizations (DTOs), the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) and
the Sinaloa Cartel (CDS).
This conflict cost 4,750 lives in 2020, making Guanajuato the
most violent state in México.The newcomer in Guanajuato, CJNG, has battled CSRL for
control of Guanajuato’s valuable trafficking routes north, as well as the many PEMEX oil
pipelines which cross Central México.
Image from Proceso.
(3.2) Message to US Att. General William Barr
“Attorney General of the United States, William Barr and Fiscalia General
de la República Alejandro Gertz Manero, Victor Noe Gonzalez Bourns alias
“El 500” ever Jose Gonzalez Bournes alias “Pepe Aguila” Jesus Salas alias
“El Chuyin” César Manjarrez alias “El H2” and Fredy Calles alias “El
Condor” are the intellectual authors of the massacre of the Lebaron family
in Sonora. They continue living unbothered by the government, moving
around unhindered as businessmen.” (Following part is unclear to me.
Translation from Borderland Beat) “They haven’t been apprehended by the
authorities because the government doesn’t want to. Or is the bribery that
they pay big enough to make you look away?"
Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua. February 1, 2021. Image from MéxicoWebCast.
The Lebaron massacre referenced here was an ambush on a group of US/México citizens
from a Mormon community in Chihuahua that left 9 women and children dead and
burned in northern México. Traveling in armoured cars, they may have been mistaken
for rival cartel members by members of “La Linea”, an armed wing of the Juárez Cartel
who fight “Los Salazar” for control of the region.
(3.3) Emergence of New Autodefensa
“We make a call to the President of Tecamachalco and other authorities
from all different levels of government, that we the townspeople are tired
of the robbery, we suffer daily extortion and murders, and inefficiencies of
the police bodies (Guardia Nacional, State, and Municipal) we have united
to end the vices in this area.
Cordially, Ciudadanos Unidos de Tecamachalco
We are not criminals, we are working people, but the rats and authorities
have pushed our movement to this.”
Tecamachalco, Puebla. January 16, 2021. Photo and reporting from MéxicoCodigoRojo.
Photos of a heavily armed group called the “Ciudadanos Unidos de Tecamachalco”
circulated online in early January of 2021. They claim to be an autodefensa fighting
against crime in their hometown, which is located within the "Red Triangle" of
huachicol, a hot spot of PEMEX fuel theft in Central México.
The government of Puebla responded and ordered that they stand down, denouncing
the illegal carrying of firearms by non-state actors, and affirmed that law enforcement is
handling crime in the region. Luis Miguel Barbosa Huerta, the governor of Puebla stated
that these autodefensas are nothing more than criminals who will soon be identified.
Trends and Analysis
(4.1) Narcomanta Distribution by State
Not graphed: 3 narcomantas each in
Chihuahua, Ciudad de México,
Guerrero, Jalisco, Puebla. 2
narcomantas each in México, Sinaloa,
Sonora. 1 narcomanta each in Coahuila,
Nuevo León, Oaxaca, Tamaulipas,
Zacatecas.
Narcomanta distribution by state
was heavily weighted towards
regions known to be contested by
different cartels such as Tijuana,
Guanajuato, or Tabasco. Some
surprising regions which placed
high were Quintana Roo and
Veracruz, where much of the fighting takes place between smaller local groups.
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Source: Narcomappingmx Narcomantas Data Set 1/1 - 3/31 |
(4.2) Narcomanta Distribution by Group
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Source: Narcomappingmx Narcomantas Data Set 1/1 - 3/31 |
Of 117 recorded narcomantas, 56 were either left without an attribution, or were
censored by the local authorities or press. These are categorized as “Unknown”.
Of the 61 narcomantas that were signed by an entity, the Cartel Jalisco Nueva
Generación recorded the most with 13, followed by La Barredora (6), Cartel del Noroeste
(4), Cártel de Sinaloa (3), and Carteles Unidos (3). “Mera Verga” also was recorded 3
times, but is not considered a group, but rather a common phrase used by several
groups or leaders.
The following 6 groups had 2 narcomantas recorded.
C#01 Y C#07, Cartel del Golfo, Ciudadanos Unidos de Tecamachalco, Miauuuuu,
Pueblos Unidos de Veracruz, R 15
The following 20 groups had 1 narcomanta recorded.
Autodefensas Michoacán, CABO 13 CABO 57 PURA GENTE DEL 100, Cartel de
Ensenada, Cartel de la Sierra, Cártel de Tláhuac, Cartel Santa Rosa de Lima, Carteles
Independientes, El Aquiles, El Italia & El Bombero, El Patrón, El Pueblo de Cajeme, El
Ruche, El Viejon, Gabino Salas, La Sombra, Los Buenos de TKT (Tecate), Los Salazar,
Mata Salazar, Pueblos Indígenas de Coahuayana y la Comunidad indigena de San
Miguel Aquila, and Los Zetas Vieja Escuela.
Because organized crime cells can frequently splinter and switch sides, only the name on
the narcomanta is recorded, not their otherwise known allegiance at the time.
Some narcomantas were left by factions of larger cartels. Such as the narcomanta left by
“Los Salazar” in Mexicali, Baja California on January 1, 2021 (Zeta Tijuana). Because
this narcomanta was signed by “Los Salazar”, and not their parent organization the
Sinaloa Cartel, it is counted separately from the Sinaloa Cartels total.
Conversely, in the
narcomanta below CJNG’s
armed wing
“Grupo Elite”
signs their name
alongside their
larger group
allegiance. This
narcomanta is
counted as
CJNG’s total. (Photo: BlogDelNarco)
(4.3) Narcomanta Distribution by Type
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Source: Narcomappingmx Narcomantas Data Set 1/1 - 3/31 |
The most common type of narcomanta were those used to threaten other groups,
security forces, or civilians. These were used in about every state listed by most groups.
This indicates that the primary use of narcomantas is to threaten others. Cartels using
narcomantas aim to establish control over a region and populace through fear.
(4.4) Relationship Between Violence and Number of Narcomantas in
State
The correlation coefficient between the homicide data and narcomantas data by state
was 0.49 - a moderate positive relationship. This is unexpected as narcomantas
generally accompany turf wars, which raise the homicide count in a region.
A possible explanation is that some states such as Guanajuato (4,940 homicides), have
finished major conflict and have entered the purge stage of a turf war - where remaining
dealers and rival operatives are hunted down by the victor, with no need for
narcomantas to continue claiming control.
Source: Incidencia Delictiva del Fuero Común 2020
(4.5) Accompaniment of bodies
Of all 117 narcomantas of all categories, 65 (55.56%) were accompanied by at least one
dead body.
This percentage increased considerably with the 63 narcomantas categorized as
“Threat”, to 39 (62.9%).
This suggests that groups leaving “Threat” narcomantas utilize bodies as added
emphasis to bolster their point.
“Help”, “Bounty”, “Recruiting”, and “Accusation” narcomantas rarely were accompanied
by bodies, perhaps meaning these would detract from their aim.
This is especially
apparent with “Bounty”, “Recruiting”, and “Help”, which rely on controlling the
narrative by appearing as the lesser of two evils to be successful in their messaging.
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Source: Narcomappingmx Narcomantas Data Set 1/1 - 3/31 |
(4.6) Narcomantas by Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG)
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Source: Narcomappingmx Narcomantas Data Set 1/1 - 3/31 |
CJNG led the narcomantas count with 13. Four of these were placed in the state of
Guanajuato, reflecting the continued turf war with the Cartel Santa Rosa de Lima
(CSRL).
In Guanajuato, CJNG narcomantas continue to highlight the ongoing turf war between
the CJNG and CSRL, which has resulted in thousands of deaths in the state over the last
few years. This conflict appears to be slowing as the leadership structure of the CSRL
has been dealt serious blows by Mexican security forces. Despite the de-escalating
conflict, the CJNG and CSRL continue to kidnap and kill each other's dealers, leaving
“Threat” narcomantas, which appeared in this report's totals.
Three were placed in Morelos, two directed at “Crispin”, which likely refers to Crispín
Gaspar Corté, alias “El Crispín”, a leader within the Guerreros Unidos cartel who were
allied with the CJNG as of early 2020.
The last was directed towards Edgar Núñez
Urquiza, an officer with the Fiscalía Anticorrupción Morelos. The narcomanta claimed
that he owes the CJNG 300,000 pesos ($17,000 USD).
Photo from Instagram account @narcoguerra_mx.
Three were placed in Jalisco, two related to conflict with their regional rivals “La Nueva
Plaza”. The contents of the third, found at a mass body dump, were not released to the
public.
(4.7) Use of Help Narcomantas by Autodefensas
Narcomantas used to request government help were exclusively used by groups
identifying as autodefensas. These groups were the Pueblos Indígenas de Coahuayana y
la Comunidad indigena de San Miguel Aquila, Autodefensas Michoacan, Ciudadanos
Unidos de Tecamachalco, Pueblos Unidos de Veracruz.
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Coahuayana, Michoacan. Pueblos Indigenas de Coahuayana y la Comunidad indigena de san Miguel Aquila. 1/15/2021 From El Salvador. |
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Ciudad Isla, Veracruz. Pueblos Unidos de Veracruz. |
These appeared within the same month with similar messages - indicating a possible new multi group coalition, perhaps similar to the anti Zeta alliance in Central México in 2010.
Source: Spring Report - Narcomappingmx