Information Warfare Conducted By Armed Groups In Mexico

 "Enojon", "Pernicious Propaganda" and "Char" for Borderland Beat 

Photograph By VendettaTamaul1 on Twitter (Banner placed by 'Los Chapitos' of the Sinaloa Cartel Threatening National Guard personnel)

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Dismembered Body With Narco Message From Comandante 18 Thrown from Moving Vehicle in Acapulco, Guerrero

By "El Huaso" for Borderland Beat

Image: @CharroNegro_Mx Twitter

The dismembered body of a man was found next to a threatening narco message on a street in Acapulco, Guerrero. According to the police report, the body was thrown from a moving vehicle. The name on the message "El Comandante 18", may refer to a nephew of Rafael Caro Quintero.

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1,400 Narco Messages Are Left by Criminal Groups Across Mexico Each Year

By "El Huaso" for Borderland Beat 

Thumbnail image created with the help of AI.

Criminal groups in Mexico use narco messages to communicate publicly, including threatening the government, and accusing rivals of atrocities. However, there are few attempts to quantify their messaging. Based on a review of available datasets, I estimate that at least 1,400 narco messages are left in Mexico each year, or almost 20,000 since the beginning of the drug war.

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Kidnapped Man Escapes Before Captors Could Kill Him and Leave Narco Message in Nicolás Romero, State of Mexico

By "El Huaso" for Borderland Beat

Authors note: Graphic photo of a body a the end of this article.

Image thumbnail created by AI.

A man managed to escape his captors after being kidnapped on July 28th in Nicolás Romero, State of Mexico. Inside his vehicle, which was abandoned by the gangsters, was a narco message to be left next to his corpse after they planned on killing him. 

The same group, La Nueva Alianza, formed by an alliance between the Unión Tepito and the CJNG is responsible for many killings and kidnappings in the region.

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CJNG Grupo Elite Kill One and Leave Narco Message in Celaya, Guanajuato

"El Huaso" for Borderland Beat

This afternoon, CJNG Grupo Elite gunmen shot and killed a man in Celaya, Guanajuato, leaving a narco message accusing him of supporting El Mamey.

The event occurred on the sidewalk of Calle Jazmín in colonia Linda Vista of Celaya, outside a convenience store.

This happened for supporting Mamey and will continue happening to those who don't understand and keep on supporting the dirty Celayans (unclear...)

Signed, CJNG GRUPO ELITE

The message is stylistically and textually consistent with dozens of other CJNG Grupo Elite messages in Guanajuato.

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CJNG Burns CSRL Linked Hospital Mentioned In Guacamaya Leaks in Celaya, Guanajauto

By "El Huaso" for Borderland Beat

This morning in Celaya, Guanajauto, hitmen of the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) attacked and burned a hospital mentioned in leaked army documents as being affiliated with rival criminal group the Cártel Santa Rosa de Lima (CSRL).

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High School Students Film Mock Narco Threat Video In Valparaiso, Zacatecas

By "El Huaso" for Borderland Beat

Videos have surfaced showing students posing as narcos and making joke threats towards other students at a high school in Valparaiso, Zacatecas. The videos are a reference to narco comunicados, violent videos released by organized crime groups in Mexico featuring threats, executions of rivals, and torture. They are a tragic reminder of the effect the hyper violent environment is having on Mexico's youth.

In the video, the students pose with musical instruments as weapons, wear masks, and yell mock threats at students at another high school in the area.

The Violent Context

News site NTR Zacatecas reported that the mayor of Valparaiso, Eleuterio Ramos Leal, lamented the normalization of violence that has affected young people. 

According to Mexico's defense ministry, Zacatecas has become violent because of its geographical value to criminal groups, who seek to control it's highways and transportation routes north. Zacatecas ranks 10th by homicide count this year, with 861 deaths, amounting to a homicide rate of 53 per 100,000, according to a government security briefing in September. While these figure are alarmingly high, the homicide rate was actually twice as high the year before, the highest in the nation, at 107 per 100,000.

The conflict is between a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel and the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación, as reported by Borderland Beat. As the security situation spirals, publicly placed bodies, narco messages, and shootouts have become commonplace. As of March 2022, there were at least 10,000 internally displaced persons in the state, according to Zacatecas senator Geovanna Bañuelos.

Source: NTR Zacatecas, Portal Valparaiso, El Financiero, INEGI Homicide 2021, Regeneracion, SwissInfo, September 20 security briefing

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CJNG Grupo Elite Leaves Chopped Up Bodies With Narco Messages In Irapuato, Guanajuato

By "El Huaso" for Borderland Beat

In four events on the same night, chopped up bodies and severed heads in coolers were left around the city of Irapuato, Guanajuato. The grisly scenes were accompanied by different copies of the same narco message, allegedly signed by the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG).

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CJNG Condemns Bar Massacre In Narco Banners Hung Around Irapuato, Guanajuato

"El Huaso" for Borderland Beat

Following a brutal massacre at a bar which left 12 dead in Irapuato, Guanajuato, professionally printed narco banners blaming the attack on rivals were left around the city, signed by the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG). These messages are notable both for their content, and what they reveal about CJNG's messaging strategy.

The Secretary of Security of Irapuato, Luis Ricardo Benavides Hernández stated in an interview that seven banners were found, and are being investigated by state authorities, according to narco news blog Valor Por Tamaulipas.

The banners reference a bar attack which occurred on October 15 in the December 12th neighborhood of Irapuato, Guanajuato, when armed gunmen opened fire on employees and customers, killing 12 and injuring three more before fleeing. 

Local security expert David Saucedo told Borderland Beat that in this region, bars, restaurants, and other similar businesses are often targeted by criminal groups for selling or allowing the sale of drugs supplied by a rival organization. AM Noticias reported that the state government confirmed Saucedo's theory yesterday in a statement which said that they are investigating the attack as related to the sale of drugs, revealing that several of those killed had criminal records. Additionally, AM Noticias reported that locals claim the bar was a well-known drug sale spot.

Narco banner translation is as follows: 

To all the citizens and all levels of government

The CJNG disclaims and condemns the massacre that occurred in a bar in the neighborhood of December 12 in Irapuato, where innocent people, women and men who were only there, lost their lives, it is time to stop these vile actions.

To you filthy people, stop killing innocent people and going out guns blazing, fucking scourges sons of a bitch. We called the mayor Lorena Alfaro and all the authorities, they have hundreds of military elements in the streets and with filters and barricades they continue to outwit them in this way.

This is not only an act of cowardice, it is an act of affront to the government, let us do our job, your presence has only helped them take refuge in Apatzingán, Tomelopes, Tomelopitos, El Morado, Morelos, Guadalupe Rivera and Pénjamo. 

They come from their nest in Juventino Rosas to heat up the plaza because they want to bring the people to their knees, but we are coming for you because Irapuato and all of Guanajuato already have an owner and it is Senor Mencho.

Sincerely, CJNG Grupo Elite

Both the method of use and the style of the narco banners are consistent with CJNG messaging in the region, specifically that of the Grupo Elite cell, which has spearheaded CJNG's advance in the state of Guanajuato.

The format of this narco banner is a template frequently used by CJNG propaganda over the last three years. Starting out as a rough banner design, it has been tweaked and edited with each publication until its current state, which has the face of CJNG leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes "El Mencho" on the right, and a rooster to the left, a common symbol associated with Mencho and CJNG. 

Now, just portions of the text are updated before being posted. Borderland Beat journalist Hearst created the helpful graphic below showing the process. 

Source: Hearst

Releasing a message which blames rivals for violent attacks has become a habit for the CJNG in Guanajuato. A nearly identical banner was released in late September, after the Cartel Santa de Lima attacked a bar in Tarimaro, Guanajuato, killing 10, as reported by Borderland Beat. 

In the hyperviolent Guanajuato battlefield, both sides of the conflict have committed brutal acts against each other, but unlike the CSRL, the CJNG invest significant effort in controlling the narrative, often portraying themselves as less violent and less predatory on civilians than the CSRL. In 2021, the CJNG released 57 narco messages compared to the CSRL's 26, revealed an analysis of Borderland Beat's narco message database from 2021.

In addition to the use of professionally printed plastic banners, which are larger, more legible, and look more official, CJNG's paper messages communicate their threats well. They typically contained more structure, appeared more organized compared to those of CSRL, and made use of stock propaganda phrases. 

The CJNG Grupo Elite cell's main stock phrase "Remember that all of Guanajuato has an owner" appears in the vast majority of their messaging. It has become a key part of their propaganda, comparable to McDonald's "I'm Lovin It" slogan. In 2021, of the 57 narco messages signed by CJNG in Guanajuato, 45 (79%) had this same phrase within them.

Sources: AM Noticias 10/17, InfoBae 10/17, Valor Por Tamaulipas 10/17, Borderland Beat Archives 10/15, Borderland Beat Archives 8/21,  Borderland Beat narco message database from 2021 collected by El Huaso

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Alleged CDS Banner Announces They Are At War With the CSRL

"HEARST" & "Sol Prendido" for Borderland Beat

Identical narco message banners signed by the Sinaloa Cartel (Cártel de Sinaloa, CDS) in which they allegedly announced their intention to end the Cártel Santa Rosa de Lima (CSRL) have appeared within at least nine municipalities in the state of Guanajuato.

Already on social media, there are allegations of the banners being fake while others allege they are genuine. Regardless of the authenticity, here is what is what is being reported about these banners.

The Banners

According to Guanajuato’s leading security analyst, David Saucedo, the banners have been discovered in nine municipalities within the state so far. 

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CJNG Grupo Elite Leaves Narco Message Directed Towards Rivals And Government In Celaya, Guanajuato

By "El Huaso" for Borderland Beat

This morning, several large, professionally printed narco messages signed by the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) appeared on bridges in Celaya, Guanajuato. The messages attempt to absolve themselves of crimes, accuse rivals of two mass shootings, and again allege corruption within the local investigative (AIC) police force.

The banners were left on at least five different bridges around the city, on 2 De Abril, De Gaspar De Almanza, Avenida Tecnologico, Enecuilco, and on De La Pepsi.

The same banner design, with different text, has been used by CJNG Grupo Elite several times before in the state.

The message accuses rivals of being behind two mass shootings this year in Celaya, the August 6 mass shooting at Bar Tres Amigos, which left 10 dead, and the May 23 shooting at Hotel and Bar Gala, which left 11 dead, as reported by Borderland Beat. A narco message signed by CSRL found at the scene of the May 23 attack blamed the victims for supporting CJNG.

The message also accuses local investigative police of colluding with rivals the CSRL, and once again alleges that they operate without search warrants, a complaint the CJNG made before at the July 28 IED attack in Irapuato, as reported by Borderland Beat.

These messages were displayed just four days after CJNG paralyzed the state with coordinated attacks across 9 cities in effort to disrupt a law enforcement operation against their leaders, an action that generated nationwide outcry and statewide panic.

Narco message context in Guanajuato

This banner design, with a military green camo background, with the face of 'Mencho', and two roosters fighting has been used by CJNG Grupo Elite several times with the text altered over last two years in Guanajuato. This is one more evidence of CJNG's high level propaganda production capabilities relative to their competition. 

An example from 9/23/21 in Salamanca.

An example from 10/4/21 in Leon.

There were over 100 narco messages found in Guanajuato in 2021. The CJNG left almost 60, more than any other group in the state, a reflection of their obsession with the region and the intense propaganda campaign they run.

Celaya was the city in Guanajuato with most narco messages in 2021, with 51, according to the Borderland Beat narco message database of 2021.

Sources: @InfoRojaMX Twitter, El Sol de Leon, Borderland Beat narco message database from 2021 collected by El Huaso, All Source News

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