Cárteles Unidos (English: United Cartels), originally and alternatively known as La Resistencia (English: The Resistance), is a Mexican criminal enforcer squad and U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. The organization is composed of trained gunmen from the Sinaloa and Gulf Cartels, as well as former members of the defunct La Familia Michoacana syndicate and Knights Templar Cartel.

Cárteles Unidos was originally formed as a splinter group of the Milenio Cartel, which aligned with the Los Zetas to fight against the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), another splinter group of the Milenio Cartel, and remove them from the states of Michoacán and Jalisco.

Shifting cartel alliances has complicated the position of the cartel in the Mexican Drug War. The Gulf Cartel and Sinaloa Cartel are no longer in the group. Infighting between La Familia Michoacana and La Nueva Familia Michoacana Organization and its armed wing Los Viagras is ongoing. La Familia Michoacana has a truce with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. The Knights Templar Cartel are now allied with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and are fighting the La Nueva Familia Michoacana Organization and its armed wing Los Viagras.

History

Formation as La Resistencia from Milenio Cartel Following the arrest of Milenio Cartel leader Óscar Nava Valencia on October 28, 2009, a power vacuum emerged within the cartel. Ramiro Pozos Gonzáles (“El Molca”) would accuse Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes (“El Mencho”) of tipping off Mexican authorities, leading to the arrest of Nava Valencia, while Oseguera Cervantes attempted to take over the remains of the Milenio Cartel.

Due to this perceived act of treason, members of the Milenio Cartel loyal to Oseguera Cervantes would be called “Los Torcidos” (Spanish: “The Twisted Ones”) by members loyal to Pozos Gonzáles, who would end up calling themselves “La Resistencia” (Spanish: “The Resistance”) . Following this rift, the Milenio Cartel would dissolve in 2010 and Oseguera Cervantes would create the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), beginning a turf war with Pozos Gonzáles’ faction.

Cárteles Unidos and turf war with CJNG By 2010, the CJNG would succeed the Milenio Cartel’s alliance with the Sinaloa Cartel following the death of its leader Ignacio Coronel Villarreal; Los Zetas would then begin encroaching on former Milenio territory in Michoacán, prompting the CJNG to reorganize themselves as the “matazetas” (Spanish: “Zeta-killers”) to counter their advances. La Resistencia would briefly align with Los Zetas, in a bid to defeat the CJNG, however the CJNG would manage to expel both Los Zetas and La Resistencia from Michoacán and Jalisco. La Resistencia was also supported by La Familia Michoacana to fight against Los Zetas and the Beltrán-Leyva Cartel. La Familia and Beltran-Leyva cartels were destroyed by federal security forces. In 2011, La Resistencia continued its violent campaign against Los Zetas by joining forces between the Sinaloa, Gulf, La Familia and Knights Templar Cartels (itself a splinter from La Familia).

Alliances change On March 1, 2011, Mexican federal police arrested a man they claimed to be the leader of "La Resistencia" Cartel, Víctor Manuel Torres García, alias "El Papirrín".http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/748158.html , Universal, March 2, 2011, Cae El Papirrín presunto líder de La Resistencia On August 1, 2011, La Resistencia commander, Neri Salgado Harrison, was arrested in Michoacán by the Mexican Federal Police. Salgado was also the head of the Apatzingan plaza, and directed the production of methamphetamine in clandestine drug labs.

On September 11, 2012, Federal Police forces arrested Pozos González, and blamed for the massacre of 26 people in Guadalajara in November 2011. Due to CJNG's advances in the Tierra Caliente (Mexico) region, La Resistencia made an alliance in 2015 with Los Viagras and remnants of the Familia Michoacana, Knights Templar, and local self-defence groups to expel the CJNG out of the region, resulting in violent conflict since 2017 in the region.

See also Merida Initiative Mexican drug war

References