Cartel Threats Force Tijuana Mayor into Hiding on Mexican Army Base

The mayor of the Mexican border city of Tijuana announced she would be moving onto a Mexican Army base in her city after receiving numerous cartel threats. The announcement comes on the same day that cartel gunmen left seven bodies inside a vehicle in that city.

This week, Tijuana Mayor Montserrat Caballero announced she would be moving to an army base due to cartel threats targeting her and her actions in office.

During a news conference, Caballero claimed that her move comes after enforcement actions from her local police force angered 56 “violence generators,” a term used by Mexican government officials to identify violent cartel commanders. Authorities in Mexico did not reveal which drug cartel was behind the threats against the border politician.

Alcaldesa de Tijuana se mudará al cuartel militar

Respuesta de la Guardia Nacional ante la violencia pic.twitter.com/65fBV46IeT

— Heras (@HerasMexicali) June 12, 2023

On Tuesday morning, Mexico’s President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador confirmed that Caballero, who hails from the same political party, was the target of cartel threats and had been under federal protection for the last 15 days.

According to Mexico’s Radio Formula, gunmen tried to kill one of Caballero’s bodyguards six weeks ago. The publication claimed that the bodyguard was the intended target of the attempted murder.

Like many other parts of Mexico, Tijuana continues to experience a high level of violence due to cartel turf wars — primarily between factions of the Sinaloa Cartel and Cartel Jalisco New Generation. This week, gunmen left seven bodies inside an SUV along Hector Teran Teran Boulevard in Tijuana. Authorities have not identified which criminal organization was behind that mass killing.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.