Capture of Ovidio: One Year Later

 "Char" for Borderland Beat 

This article was translated and reposted from RIODOCE

WRITTEN BY: MIGUEL ANGEL VEGA 

After the capture of 'Chapo' Guzmán's son, the Sinaloa Cartel modified its way of operating and prohibited the production and trafficking of fentanyl in the region.

A year after the arrest of Ovidio Guzmán López el Ratón, the criminal factions of the Sinaloa Cartel made a series of modifications to their way of operating, not only did they continue to arm themselves to the teeth, but they also prohibited the production and trafficking of fentanyl in the territories where they operate.

According to people consulted by this weekly, and who work for the factions of Los Chapitos, Ismael el Mayo Zambada, and groups that operate in the Badiraguato area, the measure would have arisen from the arrest of Ovidio on January 5, 2023, in Jesus Maria, but would have gained relevance in April, once the US Department of Justice (USDOJ), announced that it would go all out against the sons of Joaquin Guzman Loera el Chapo.

"What is said is that Los Menores requested a meeting with other leaders to agree to prohibit the "plebada or crews" from producing synthetic chiva (fentanyl), since their main business was cocaine, and because the fentanyl produced in their territories 'was causing them a lot of problems,' said a person who has ties to the Chapitos and Mayo faction, and who asked that his identity not be revealed.

This information was confirmed by another group that operates in the Badiraguato area, outside of the Chapitos and Mayo factions, who explained that his boss also prohibited the production of fentanyl in his territory, because "the DEA was very tough.

"It was banned just like in Culiacan, and whoever they catch cooking synthetic fentanyl, well, you can imagine what they are going to do to them," said the hitman boss, who also requested anonymity.

Simultaneously to the prohibition, the factions also prohibited the arrival of precursors coming from China and began to arm themselves as never before, because even though they were prepared to face the army and the Navy when they arrived, no one expected an air attack like the one that occurred during the arrest, and the more than 1,000 hired killers who had been waiting for three years for the call to rescue Ovidio were silenced by the three Black Hawks helicopters used by the army and a small plane, while the infantry was basically a screen to distract the extraction that was made by air.

To date, according to official sources, the exact number of hired killers who lost their lives or disappeared while trying to rescue Ovidio is unknown, as the official version of Sedena is still 19 criminals and 10 military personnel dead, although the locals of Jesus Maria continue to claim that there were more than that.

The Discontent

The ban on producing and trafficking fentanyl brought widespread discontent among fentanyl cooks and traffickers, and those who tried to circumvent the order were killed or disappeared.

One fentanyl cook, who asked to be identified by the false name of "Martin," said Ovidio's arrest "put everyone behind," in his own words, as the ban put many people out of work.

"The truth is that it was bad that they didn't let us work, because that's how we live. They have always had money, and they have a lot of power, and they can stop in their business right now, and live well for the rest of their lives, but not us," said the cook, referring to Los Chapitos.

According to his testimony, he had been cooking fentanyl since 2019.

OVIDIO GUZMÁN LÓPEZ.

"Around that time the first Culiacanazo happened, and since they rescued Ovidio, he told us not to cook (fentanyl) because the government was going to come with everything.

And everyone stopped. But after about a month we got together, and we told him (Ovidio) to give us a chance; that we would pay him a fee, but that he would let us work," the cook recalled.

According to Martín, Ovidio's response was that they should cook under their own responsibility, but that they should hide the kitchens well, and that there was no need to pay him any fee. Martín, like many other cooks, continued cooking and earning money, until the army returned with the second Culiacanazo, and this time they did take Ovidio away.

Unlike Ovidio's first arrest, this time there was no warning to stop cooking fentanyl, but rather a direct order from Los Chapitos.

A few weeks later, three alleged fentanyl cooks turned up dead, literally buried in at least 150,000 M30 pills, whose main ingredient is fentanyl. They were said to have disobeyed Los Chapitos' order and there were the consequences.

The order coincided with an onslaught by Sedena, which, according to documents published by Reuters, said 89 percent of the fentanyl labs located and destroyed by the army were located in Sinaloa, while 4 percent were in Durango and 3 percent in Michoacan. The order, according to security analysts, was a product of the pressure the DEA was imposing on the government of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.

"It is clear that there is a direct order to go after Los Chapitos, and it is clear that to a large extent, it is due to the humiliation that Mexico suffered when they rescued Ovidio in 2019, and one way to show that they are working is to focus on their territory," said Guillermo Valdes Castellanos, former director of the Cisen in Mexico.

According to Martin, the cook, many of the labs that were located and destroyed by the army were "dedazos," or "give information" which the same factions affiliated with the Sinaloa Cartel reported destroying the labs that were not shut down by their own owners.

Article published on December 31, 2023 in edition 1092 of the weekly Ríodoce.

Source: RIODOCE