Shifting Cartel Alliances Keep Western Mexico Engulfed in Turf Wars

Despite Mexico’s official assurances that security is improving, the western part of the country continues to be a violent hotspot as rival cartels wage a fierce turf war.

In recent weeks, the state of Jalisco has seen a dramatic rise in violence as one of Mexico’s most violent criminal organizations, Cartel Jalisco New Generation (CJNG), fights a former ally Los Pajaros Sierra (The Sierra Birds). The group got its name from Abel “Sierra 1” or “Viejon” Alcantar Vallejo, the founder. Law enforcement sources revealed that Sierra 1 has been operating from the shadows for some time, leaving day-to-day operations to his subordinates. Mexico’s government is currently offering a $100,000 peso bounty for his capture. His brother, Jose “Sierra 2” Alcantar Vallejo, died in a mass shooting at the hands of a rival organization earlier this year.

The day-to-day operations of the group were led by Abel Cornelio “Sierra 3” Armenta, who had been waging war against CJNG and had managed to push them back until his recent capture by Mexican authorities.

One of the most gruesome killings in the turf war took place last week when authorities discovered dismembered bodies in trash bags along a dirt road in Atizapan El Alto. The region is close to the border with Michoacan, a state that is contested by CJNG and an alliance of smaller organizations known as Carteles Unidos.

Weeks prior, authorities recovered four other sacks with human remains in the same region. The area continues to see targeted killings and clashes as the Pajaros Sierra face former allies.

The region has a long history of violence as criminal organizations such as La Familia Michoacana, the Knights Templar, Los Zetas, and others have laid claims. For a time, the region was controlled by the CJNG until Los Pajaros Sierra went independent. It remains unclear if the fight against their former masters will push Los Pajaros Sierra to join forces with former enemies in Carteles Unidos.

Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to the Mexican States of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and other areas to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles are published in both English and in their original Spanish. This article was written by “C.P. Mireles” from Tamaulipas, and Jose Luis Lara, a former leading member who helped start the Self-Defense Movement in Michoacán.