The internal war within the Sinaloa Cartel has reconfigured alliances between criminal groups and exposed deep fractures in one of the most powerful organizations on the continent. Amid the conflict between the Los Chapitos faction and La Mayiza, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) has begun providing limited but strategic support to the sons of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.
The armed conflict, which escalated in June—the month ranked as the most violent of the year in the state—has resulted in more than 1,200 deaths and nearly 1,400 missing persons, according to unofficial figures. The internal dispute over control of routes, plazas, and laboratories has forced Los Chapitos to seek external alliances to maintain operational capacity.
According to security specialist David Saucedo, in an interview with Adela Micha for “Me lo dijo Adela,” the CJNG has begun providing partial support to Los Chapitos, primarily by sending armed cells and operational resources.
However, he clarified that the support does not come from the entire Jalisco Cartel structure, but from just one of its five commands: the one headed by Audias Flores Silva, better known by the alias “El Jardinero.”
“It seems to me that El Mencho is managing this relationship. He is the main beneficiary of the mutual erosion of Los Chapitos and the group affiliated with El Mayo Zambada […] What we see is support in dribs and drabs, if there is an alliance as such, but that does not mean that the Jalisco Cartel has fully backed Los Chapitos,” Saucedo stated.
