Jesús "El Azteca" Salazar del Villar, Son of CIS/Los Salazar Leader "Muñeco" Detained by ICE in Miami, Florida

 "Socalj" for Borderland Beat

A third generation drug trafficker from the Salazar family of Sonora was among 1,100 other alleged illegal aliens detained by ICE with the help local law enforcement in a week long sweep across Florida, dubbed Operation Tidal Wave. The operation targeted supposed gang members and illegal alien smugglers among others who had illegally entered the country.

The grandson of long sanctioned trafficker Don Adán Salazar Zamorano, and son of "Muñeco" had been targeted by rival cartel factions as recently as February of this year. 

Many Mexican news sources cite his middle name as being spelled Adahir, however, his ICE detention record reports it as Adhair.

Who is El Azteca?

“El Azteca” is listed as one of the current leaders of the CIS or Independent Sonora cartel, a criminal organization that emerged from the recent split between Los Salazar and the Sinaloa Cartel, specifically from the Los Chapitos faction.

"El Azteca" reportdly took over operations for his family in the Navojoa area after the death of his half brother "La Cria" in August 2019. He was mentioned by rival Caborca Cartel narco mantas in 2021 and is allegedly the plaza boss of Navojoa, Sonora and contests nearby areas with Los Mata Salas and the Caborca Cartel.

Sonora Informativo reported that he was arrested by the Mexican Army for carrying weapons with his cousin, narco corrido singer Alberto del Villar Cisneros in February 2021. Sonora Informativo claims they were released soon after a bribe of $5,000,000 pesos ($239,403 USD) was paid.

 

He is the son of Jesús Alfredo Salazar Ramírez, known as "El Muñeco," who was arrested in 2012 and has reportedly been managing the Los Salazar family from prison for his father, Adán. 

"El Azteca" was named in 2021 narco mantas.

In 2015, the Salazar clan's operations, led from prison by "Don Adán" and "El Muñeco," resulted in the forced displacement of at least 1,200 people in Sonoyta and 300 families in Las Chinacas, in Chínipas, Chihuahua.

Los Salazar members have been linked to the murder of Miroslava Breach, a journalist for La Jornada who was investigating ties between criminal groups and local authorities in Chihuahua. Breach was murdered on March 23, 2017, and according to various investigations, the order came from members of Los Salazar for her publications on human rights violations and drug-related violence.

The group came into conflict in 2023 with Los Chapitos following the order to cease the production and distribution of fentanyl issued by Iván Archivaldo Guzmán Salazar. The edict was in response to US indictments and pressure to stop the Sinaloa Cartel's fentanyl trafficking.

The Los Salazar group ignored this order, which later led them to consolidate as the Independent Cartel of Sonora (CIS). 

The split gave rise to Los Mata Salas, an armed cell of Los Chapitos dedicated to combating and exterminating their former allies. In June 2024 that this group emerged publicly through a video posted on social media in which hooded gunmen made explicit threats to Los Salazar and local authorities.

Earlier this year, it was reported that "El Azteca" was attacked in Acapulco in February 2025. It is likely he fled to the US after that.

Underage Pregnant Girlfriend Murdered

In September 2020, after the disappearance of a 16 year-old-girl identified as Ximena Hernandez was reported weeks prior in Chinipas, Chihuahua, relatives confirmed that the minor was found dead on a road leading to Navojoa in Sonora.

The pregnant girl had been the girlfriend of Adhair Salazar. After an argument, he ordered her kidnapped and apparently murdered and burned her body on a stretch of highway, according to information provided by authorities in both states.

The young woman was living in Chinipas, Chihuahua, and after the argument, she was kidnapped according to her relatives, who began searching for her through banners and messages on social media.

Operation Tidal Wave

He was arrested during a large scale immigration crackdown in Florida that saw over 1,200 suspected illegal immigrants arrested last week. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and law enforcement from the state of Florida have arrested 780 migrants who are in the United States illegally in a four-day operation beginning April 28.

The operation, dubbed "Operation Tidal Wave" uses ICE's 287(g) authority, which allows for state and local law enforcement agencies to be deputized and to arrest those in the U.S. illegally. State and local agencies allow for ICE to be in jails and on task forces, according to the agency.

"So this is one of the first large-scale missions we've done like this ever," he added. "We brought a 'whole the government' approach with cooperative jurisdictions that want to help ICE secure communities in neighborhoods and remove public safety threats from our neighborhoods."

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis made the announcement that also included the touting of arrests of several gang members including those from Tren de Aragua, Barrio Azteca, MS-13, illegal alien smugglers and others.

Over 430 of the people arrested were from Guatemala; 280 from Mexico; 153 from Honduras; 48 from Venezuela; 24 from El Salvador; and 178 “from elsewhere,” according to the handout.

Sources ICE, Tribuna, El Heraldo, Borderland Beat, Miami Herald, Sonora Informativo