Chaos Down South: Suspected Cartel Gunmen Raid Hardware Store in Mexico and Kill Four Workers
Jose Nino
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On November 3, 2020, cartel gunmen stormed a hardware store located in the Mexican state of Guanajuato and attacked four workers with gunfire and grenades.
The store would later end up in flames in what appears to be another skirmish between rival drug carels, according to a report by the Daily Mail. According to the Celaya Public Security Ministry, five armed men associated with cartels arrived at the scene of the crime in a truck and a motorcycle. They then started opening fire and throwing grenades inside the store on the afternoon of November 3.
Before fleeing the scene, the assailants burned down the store. A photo that went viral on social media showed the charred bodies of at least three victims after the local fire department was able to put out the fire.
According to Mexican news magazine Proceso, the cartel gunmen left a message on a banner. However, the exact message has not been released to the public
The city of Celaya and other cities in the state of Guanajuato have been flashpoints in a cartel war between the local Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one Mexico’s most prominent cartels.
At the moment, an investigation is being conducted by the Guanajuato State Attorney General’s Office to find out if the attack is connected to the arrest of José Alfredo ‘El Yeyo’ Sánchez at a mall in the state of Veracruz on the same day of the attack on Celaya.
Sánchez was an important leader of the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel and was arrested by Mexican Marines without any form of violent resistance. and
There was an apparent falling out between Sánchez and Adán ‘El Azul’ Ochoa, who became leader of the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel following the arrest of cartel leader Jose Antonio ‘El Marro’ Yépez in August. Sánchez reportedly switched sides and became a member of the competing Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
Mexico is an institutional mess and border security remains a powerful issue. With media outlets reportedly calling the election for Joe Biden, Republicans must do everything possible to make immigration a major issue leading into the 2022 election cycle. If Biden is installed as president, there will be little attention paid to immigration or border security matters.
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