A State in Constant Struggle
The reality in Sinaloa is a testimony of resilience in the face of adversity. For more than sixty weeks, the entity, with its capital Culiacán at the helm, has demonstrated unwavering strength while navigating complex circumstances. The confrontation between factions of the Pacific Cartel is intensifying in waves, such as the one recorded last week, which resulted in a significant number of human losses, a situation that defies immediate understanding but reinforces the urgency of seeking lasting solutions.
These episodes of tension manifest themselves in various geographical locations. Sometimes, the spotlight is on the high areas of Culiacán; others, in the southern regions. They also occur in municipalities such as Navolato and, on more sporadic occasions, in Guasave or Los Mochis, approaching the border with Sonora. An agent of public security corporations, with a vast career in the region, describes this process as a reconfiguration of the criminal landscape.
The Epicenter of the Conflict
When talking about this reconfiguration, reference is made to one of the factions in dispute, identified as Los Chapitos. This group brings together the free children of the former local drug trafficking leader, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, and his followers, who have faced a significant decline in their ranks in recent months. Recently, the federal Security Cabinet, under the leadership of Secretary Omar García Harfuch, announced the arrest of six members of this criminal organization after a confrontation in Culiacán.
The authorities also reported the death of the alleged leader of this group, Ezequiel Rubio, known by the alias Morral. Both he and some of the detainees would have been part of the criminal network commanded by José Ángel Canobbio, alias Güerito, one of the key figures of Los Chapitos, belonging to a subgroup known as Los Chimales, widely mentioned in popular culture.
Canobbio, actively wanted by the United States, was arrested by Mexican authorities in February, representing one of the most forceful blows against this faction in recent times. Subsequently, the Government of President Claudia Sheinbaum managed his extradition to the neighboring country to face legal proceedings, forming part of a group of 29 alleged drug traffickers transferred to US prisons. It was noted that Güerito would have led the confrontations with the authorities during the attempts to capture Ovidio Guzmán in 2019 and 2023.
Institutional Response and Citizen Mobilization
Those days of intense conflict, popularly known in the capital of Sinaloa as the culiacanazos, seem distant, but they have given way to a reality where violence has become persistent. There have been days with different levels of intensity, such as that of Wednesday, October 22, which ended with twelve deaths, the majority in the capital. That day began with the discovery of a bagged body in the Santa Rocío neighborhood, the seizure of half a ton of methamphetamine in the same city, the seizure of 43 artisanal explosives in Concordia, and a series of homicides in various parts of Culiacán and the tourist city of Mazatlán.
This new wave of violence has resulted in at least 41 deaths in a period of six days. Given this scenario, Secretary García Harfuch stated this Monday in the Chamber of Deputies that Sinaloa is a priority and expressed his conviction that it is possible to achieve its pacification. This cycle of violence occurs in the midst of deep social fatigue on the part of a population that is crying out for tranquility.
Last Saturday, hundreds of people gathered in Mazatlán, the tourist jewel of the state, to demonstrate in protest against the number of missing people registered in the entity. According to the Secretary of the Interior, 1,391 disappearances have been recorded since the conflict intensified in September of last year, of which 157 people have appeared dead. The State Attorney General’s Office handles even higher figures, a discrepancy that is difficult to reconcile. Forced recruitment by the competing groups—Los Chapitos on the one hand, and the followers of the sons of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada on the other—helps explain, in part, this tragic statistic, complemented by the practice of hiding the bodies of the victims of this war.
The disappearance at the beginning of October of a young man originally from Durango in an establishment in the port of Mazatlán, owned by the then state Secretary of Economy, Ricardo Velarde, acted as a catalyst for the weekend protest. The story of Carlos Emilio Galván, a 21-year-old qualified chef who disappeared after going to the bathroom of a tourist establishment, shocked the community. The establishment claimed to have delivered video material and other information to the Prosecutor’s Office, but the young man’s whereabouts remain unknown. This case, along with the ton of subsequent violent events, threatens to be overshadowed, despite the fact that the official involved submitted his resignation from office.
Complex Overview and Disputed Narratives
The future of the criminal conflict in the state is uncertain, beyond the speculations that proliferate on social networks, an area where information is usually rooted in propaganda. Both Los Chapitos and the Los Mayos faction have been pioneers in the use of disinformation on the internet, creating channels and accounts to disseminate their alleged advances, alliances and victories, often accompanied by high-impact audiovisual material. The question of why there are weeks that are less violent than others, or why certain geographic areas seem to calm down and then get worse, remains.
An agent with knowledge of the situation explains it as a process in stages: “They kill a few, many then hide and flee, and the others take three or four weeks to locate again. It is the hunt for one against another.” The faction of the children of El Mayo Zambada, allegedly commanded by Ismael Zambada Sicairos, alias Mayito Flaco, would have achieved support
