In August, the cell led by Heraclio Guerrero Martínez—known as “El Tío Lako,” a key regional leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG)—suffered a major blow following the arrest of his daughter, his partner, and seven other figures linked to the criminal organization.
A few days later, the head of the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection (SSPC), Omar García Harfuch, announced the capture of another 20 CJNG members. Although he did not specify whether they were affiliated with El Tío Lako’s cell, their criminal activities—as well as the possession of exotic animals—matched the patterns observed in previous operations targeting the regional leader.
These operations, combined with monitoring conducted by MILENIO, have revealed some of the states, municipalities, and zones where El Tío Lako maintains a presence. View the “narco-map” here.
This media outlet first mentioned El Tío Lako in March 2015; however, his notoriety grew significantly following the assassination of Enrique Hernández Salcedo—a former self-defense group leader and the Morena party’s mayoral candidate for Yurécuaro, Michoacán, in 2015.
The politician had warned a year earlier that his days were numbered, but it was not until May 14, 2015, that he was shot dead.
The then-State Attorney General’s Office identified El Tío Lako as the mastermind behind the murder; at the time, he was beginning to expand his influence from the municipality of Tanhuato into other territories in northwestern Michoacán.
On November 20, 2015, authorities arrested seven individuals implicated in the murder—including El Tío Lako—in the municipality of Ecuandureo. Investigations indicated that the regional leader and his nephew, Adrián Alonso Guerrero Covarrubias—known as “El 08″—were at odds with the former self-defense group leader over control and the illegal management of a sand quarry in the community of Tinaja de Vargas.
In connection with this incident, “El Tío Lako” was allegedly prosecuted for the candidate’s murder but was later released—though the reason for his release remains unknown to this day. Since then, his criminal empire has continued to grow.
