On June 30, authorities discovered 20 bodies in Culiacán, the capital of Sinaloa. Four decapitated corpses were hanging from a bridge, while 16 others were packed into a van, each with gunshot wounds and a note allegedly left by a rival cartel faction.

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July 7, 2025 | Dispatch | Power and Security

Violence in Mexico has reached unprecedented levels due to the ongoing civil war between two dominant factions of the Sinaloa Cartel: Los Chapitos and La Mayiza.

Los Chapitos and La Mayiza are splinter factions of the once-unified Sinaloa Cartel, originally led by Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García. El Chapo’s arrest in 2016 and extradition in 2017 created a power vacuum, sparking internal tensions between Zambada and El Chapo’s sons over who would lead the organization.

As rivalries escalated, the cartel splintered into two main groups, Los Chapitos and La Mayiza, setting the stage for an all-out civil war.

Following El Mayo’s arrest on July 25, 2024, Culiacán, the capital of Sinaloa, became a flashpoint for extreme violence between the warring factions.

The exponential increase in violence between the factions was sparked by the kidnapping of Zambada by El Chapo’s son, Joaquín Guzmán López. After conducting the kidnapping, López forced Zambada onto a plane and flew him against his will to El Paso, Texas, where both Zambada and López were arrested by U.S. authorities.

Extreme violence is commonplace in Culiacán, with authorities losing control over the level of harm that has fallen upon the state of Sinaloa.

A reminiscent example of violence in Culiacán occurred in 2019 when El Chapo’s son, Ovidio Guzmán López, was captured as a result of a U.S.-Mexico joint intelligence operation.

In response to Ovidio López’s capture, the Mexican government was met with an overwhelming amount of violence from Los Chapitos and other cartel forces. Due to the former president of Mexico Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s desire to halt the violence and protect innocent civilians being targeted by these groups, López was released.

In a recent press conference addressing the statewide increase in violence, Sinaloa Secretary General Feliciano Castro Meléndez stated, “Military and police forces are working together to reestablish total peace in Sinaloa.”

However, this statement alone does not capture the confidence of the people. It is no secret that corruption and fear of retaliation have led to a lack of trust in authorities, severely diminishing the state’s capacity to confront these cartels.

States such as Sinaloa, plagued with violence and cartel influence, are drowning in violence.

These groups have an insatiable appetite for territorial control and financial profit via drug smuggling and human trafficking.

Deaths will not cease until states reclaim the capacity to conduct efficient law enforcement and erase any opportunities of corruption, either by foreign intervention with their American neighbors or a strengthened crackdown by federal Mexican forces.