Mexican drug cartel and organized crime syndicate founded in 1996 by the five Beltrán Leyva brothers. Originally part of the Sinaloa Cartel, it became independent and controlled drug trafficking corridors, engaging in cocaine, heroin, and marijuana trafficking, as well as human smuggling, money laundering, extortion, kidnapping, and murder. The cartel infiltrated Mexican government agencies and Interpol. It was declared disbanded in 2011 after the arrest of its last significant leader, though remnants continued until 2017.
CRIMENET has extracted 132 linkages for this organization, including 48 cooperative ties across 16 organizations, 38 conflicts across 11 organizations, 46 other connections and footprints in 3 countries.
Operations in Mexico City, Chiapas, Guerrero, Guanajuato, Mexico State, Morelos, Nuevo León, Querétaro, Quintana Roo, Sinaloa, Sonora, and Tamaulipas, as well as in the United States and Canada;
The Beltrán Leyva brothers' Colombian cocaine supplier, Ever Villafane Martínez, was arrested in Morelos in August 2008.
Operations in Mexico City, Chiapas, Guerrero, Guanajuato, Mexico State, Morelos, Nuevo León, Querétaro, Quintana Roo, Sinaloa, Sonora, and Tamaulipas, as well as in the United States and Canada;