If you are in a position to make decisions for others, you may ask yourself: what would you do if the cartel was hunting you down? This question is particularly relevant if you have relatives or friends in Mexico who may be in danger. These individuals are often targeted by criminal groups because they have reported on drug violence. For example, Dr. Maria del Rosario Fuentes Rubio was the administrator of the non-profit organization Courage for Tamaulipas, which shared information about drug violence in that Gulf Coast state. However, when her captors announced her impending death, they threatened others to cease reporting on the violence.
The violence that comes from Mexican cartels has largely been confined to border towns in the U.S., but the violence has reached a new frontier. In Phoenix, police have formed a special unit to deal with abductions. While most victims are low-level couriers and are held hostage when a drug deal goes bad, this new frontier for drugs is Georgia. Last year, a Georgia drug dealer was kidnapped in a criminal ring.
The Jalisco New Generation Cartel was responsible for the deaths of five people. Three of the victims were members of his own crime group, while the fifth was a dope dealer in another state. One member of the cartel – CJ – lured all five victims to a meeting. They were armed and had a large amount of cash on them. The Mexican drug cartels rarely kill their sales force, but they will take a hefty chunk out of your money.
