How much of Mexico is under the control of criminal elements?  I guess it depends who is answering the question.  To my knowledge, President Andrés López-Obrador has not acknowledged that any part of Mexico is run by cartels.  He plays games with crime statistics and blames everyone but his administration for the breakdown in law and order.

So who is telling the truth?  Well, this is a report from Pulse News Mexico:

A study released this week by the political analysis firm AC Consultores showed that organized crime groups in Mexico are now exerting their influence over at least 1.59 million square kilometers of national territory, representing 81 percent of the country, leaving 108 million Mexicans at risk of violence.

The AC Consultores study was based on six months of meticulous review of official government data and documents hacked from Mexico's Defense Secretariat by the Guacamaya group, which last September released a collection of over 4 million confidential government documents that were obtained by international hackers.

The criminal organizations with the greatest presence in Mexico are the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and the Sinaloa Cartel, the study said.

Mexican criminal groups, the study said, exert their influence and terrorize citizens through executions, massacres, drug banners, extortion, kidnappings, threatening videos and even the murders of police officers, politicians and officials.

Over the last four years, such events have been reported in 1,488 of Mexico's 2,471 municipalities.

According to the study, the bloody Jalisco New Generation Cartel has the greatest presence in Mexico, operating across 28 out of the country's 32 states. The Sinaloa Cartel comes in second place with operations in 24 states.

The presence of the Gulf Cartel has been detected in 10 states, the Northeast Cartel in eight states, the Familia Michoacana in seven and Los Zetas in six.

Additionally, the Templars have operation in five states and Los Chapitos in four.

Small criminal organizations such as the Beltrán Leyva, the Caborca Cartel, Los Talibanes, Los Rojos, Los Salazar and Los Viagras each operate in three states.

How accurate is this report?  I think it's pretty true, as anyone paying attention can tell.  For example, I heard on the radio yesterday that auto thefts in Texas are up.  Why?  Apparently, cartel "representatives" come into Texas and look for cars, especially vans.  They love those.  It must be the air-conditioning unit.  They steal them and cross the border.

Then you have the violence in Mexico.  Lots of it!  Just ask anyone who lives down there.  I heard from a lady that traveling at night on Mexican roads is just an invitation to get your car stolen.  Another man told me a few years ago that he'll never take his truck to Mexico anymore.  Who are these people?  They are Mexicans living here who are afraid to visit their country by car.  They take the bus instead.

How much of Mexico is under criminal control?  No one knows for sure because these elements usually don't register their address with the local post office.

What can the U.S. government do?  A lot more than we are doing.  Also, I hope some Mexican candidate for president in 2024 has the courage to point out that Mexican sovereignty is at risk if bad guys with high-powered weapons are running the highways.

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Image: BaptisteGrandGrand.