Mexico considers kingpin strategy to combat organized crime

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Authorizes Military Operations to Arrest Cartel Leaders

In July 2024, Mexican authorities arrested Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, a co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, in Texas. This arrest led to a surge in disappearances and violence in the region. According to activist Maria Isabel Cruz, who has been searching for missing people since then, the trend accelerated on September 9, with a power struggle within the cartel causing a rise in murders, femicides, and missing-person reports.

Since then, homicides in Sinaloa have increased significantly, from 44 in August to 142 in September. The violence continued into 2025, resulting in 1,657 deaths. Sabuesos Guerreras estimates that the number of disappearances has reached 5,800 since July 2024, although this is likely an undercount.

The Mexican government’s approach to addressing cartel leadership has been criticized by some experts. Bernardo Leon Olea, a former security commissioner, argues that targeting leaders can lead to fragmentation within cartels, resulting in more violence and instability. He also questions the effectiveness of this strategy for civilians, as extortion and crime continue despite efforts to dismantle organizations.

President Sheinbaum has continued with the “kingpin strategy,” which involves arresting and removing cartel leadership, largely due to pressure from the United States. The US government has threatened to take action if Mexico fails to aggressively confront its cartels, including imposing tariffs and launching a military assault on Mexican soil. In response, Sheinbaum’s government has extradited nearly 100 suspected cartel members to the US and launched multiple operations to decapitate cartel leadership.

However, some experts believe that this approach may not have a significant impact on insecurity, but rather serves to appease US desires. The death of Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, sparked a wave of retaliatory violence and cartel infighting, resulting in at least 70 deaths.

The Mexican government’s efforts to address cartel leadership have been ongoing for over 20 years, with four successive administrations struggling to dismantle Mexico’s criminal organizations. The effectiveness of this approach remains uncertain, and its long-term impact on the country’s security is still being assessed.

Source: Al Jazeera