Mexico's Secretary of Security and Civilian Protection, Omar García Harfuch, said in a press conference that violence in the state of Sinaloa has been "contained," noting that authorities in the municipality of Culiacán are now receiving more theft reports than other crimes. The statement comes as the city sees record-breaking levels of violent crime following a turf war that erupted in September.
Harfuch's words also come just days after Sinaloa ended November with nearly 175 homicides and after citizens in the municipality of Culiacan reported an explosion followed by a shooting in the area.
"The situation has been contained because the most intense confrontations have not occurred within Culiacán, as they did at the beginning," Harfuch explained. "The latest events have taken place on the outskirts of Culiacán." According to the official, authorities within the municipality are now receiving a higher number of vehicle and business theft reports.
Harfuch attributed the results to President Claudia Sheinbaum's deployment of the National Defense in Culiacan. "We will continue to increase the presence of security forces," he stated. Harfuch also cited high-impact arrests of drug cartel members made in November.
When asked about the recent bout of violence in Sinaloa, Harfuch expressed confidence in the federal government's efforts but acknowledged that the results would not be immediate. "This will be resolved, but it's not something that happens overnight," he said.
The ongoing turf war in Sinaloa broke in September after Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada and Joaquín Guzmán López, son of Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, were arrested on U.S. soil. Since then, factions answering to each one of them have seen intense clashes, with around 500 homicides reported in the state.
According to Milenio the average homicide rate in Sinaloa before the turf war broke was around 30 to 40 homicides a month. In September the state reported 144 homicides, followed by 188 in October, and 175 in November. On Tuesday, CNN reported of at least 42 deaths within the last week.
In addition to deploying armed forces, President Sheinbaum recently took a more nuanced approach to combat cartel recruitment by enlisting Mexico's biggest sports star, world champion boxer Saúl "Canelo" Álvarez. She invited him to her morning press conference to encourage minors in Sinaloa to embrace sports as a path away from the crime-ridden culture deeply embedded in their communities.
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