Mexican authorities arrested two alleged high ranking members of the notorious Sinaloa Cartel this week, just days before the Trump administration designated that group and others based in Mexico as foreign terrorist organizations.
The list includes transnational gangs MS-13 and Tren de Aragua, as well as several cartels including the Sinaloa, Jalisco, Zetas, and Gulf cartels, Cartel Unidos, and La Nueva Familia Michoacana (LNFM).
Jose Angel Canobbio Inzunza was arrested in the city of Culiacán in northwest Mexico Wednesday, according to Omar Hamid García Harfuch, secretary of Security and Citizen Protection of Mexico.
According to the US Department of Justice (DOJ), Canobbio Inzunza was allegedly the right-hand man for one of the sons of Mexican drug lord Joaquin Guzman, otherwise known as “El Chapo.”
Canobbio Inzunza was indicted by a Chicago grand jury in November for allegedly manufacturing cocaine, fentanyl and other drugs and importing them into the United States.
He reportedly worked with “El Chapo’s” son Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazaar and his three brothers, who together are known as the “Chapitos” in the Sinaloa Cartel.
“The indictment states that Canobbio Inzunza financed and led an armed security group known as ‘Los Chimales,’ which provided security for the Guzman faction of the Sinaloa Cartel and engaged in armed conflict to assist the Chapitos in importing drugs into the United States,” the DOJ said.
On Thursday, Mexico also arrested Kevin Alonso “N,” in Culiacán, Sinaloa, according to Harfuch.
“In a joint operation, the Mexican Army, National Guard, and Air Force arrested Kevin Alonso ‘N,’ alias ‘200,’ in Culiacán, Sinaloa,” Harfuch wrote on X, alleging that ‘200’ managed security for the leader of a faction known as Los Chapitos, and coordinated the group’s purchase of weapons and ammunition.
“Arrests and operations will continue with the goal of reducing the violence in Sinaloa caused by criminal groups,” Harfuch added.
On February 8 Mexican forces also arrested Mauro “N,” in a deadly armed confrontation.
According to Harfuch, he is “an aviator pilot and key operator within a criminal cell responsible for violence in the region. He has been identified as a trusted confidant of the group’s leader.” A Mexican Army soldier was killed in the confrontation.
Mauro “N” “is linked to attacks and clashes with authorities, as well as drug trafficking to the United States,” Harfuch added.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has expressed concern over the US decision to designate certain criminal groups in her country as terrorist organizations. She said Thursday that decision was not undertaken in consultation with her government.
“What we want to make clear with this designation is that we do not negotiate sovereignty, this can’t be an opportunity by the United States to invade our sovereignty,” Sheinbaum said.