The Wave of Murder in Juárez Continues

Eleven Young Persons Strangled in Picadero in Col Praderas de los Oasis

One of the 11 Murdered at Praderas de los Oasis

From Diario de Juarez:  Eleven young persons, including three women, ranging in age from 19 to about 25, were found dead, apparently tortured prior to being strangled, in a two-story home in Col. Praderas de los Oasis, near the intersection of Juan Gabriel and Barranco Azul, in the Southern part of the city (click here for map of area).  The murders occurred on Thursday night, according to authorities, at the hands of approximately nine assassins.  All of the victims were found lying face-down, tourniquets around the neck, with hands tied behind their backs.  No shots were fired.  The husband of one of the female victims was murdered in Juárez two months ago.  The home in which the murders occurred was known to be a "picadero," (a place where drugs are sold and consumed) and several of the victims had been open with friends about using marijuana and meth.

Some officials have surmised the targets of the attack were two of the murdered men, 19 and 22 years of age, who had tattoos associated with the Mexicle gang. 

The Mexicle gang was created in Texas in 1987, in an effort to unite all Mexican nationals imprisoned in Texas facilities.  Mexicles began operating in Juárez ten years ago as the armed force for the newly-arrived Sinaloa Cartel, headed at that time by Chapo Guzman.  To counter the arrival of the Mexicle gang the Juárez Cartel's armed force, La Linea, made an alliance that same year (2008) with Barrio Azteca, a prison gang created in El Paso in 1986 which operates both in El Paso and Juárez.

Another line of thinking links the 11 deaths to the death of Juan Arturo Padilla Juárez, said to be second in command of the "vieja guardia" portion of the Azteca gang, in a Chihuahua (city) jail last week during a fight between Azteca inmates.  Presumably the fight (see below) was between members of the "vieja guardia" and the "los nuevo Aztecas."  A wave of killings spread throughout Juárez in the aftermath of Padilla's death.

It is difficult to reconcile the theory that two of the 11 killed at the picadero were the targets of the attack with what appear to be facts in the case.  According to El Imparcial.com (click here), quoting state authorities, the killers were already inside the picadero when, perhaps one by one the 11 persons-to-be-killed arrived and were captured by surprise.  Had the objective been specifically to kill the two Mexicles, more likely the assassins would have waited for them to arrive and killed them going in, without killing the other nine persons.  The same story asserts authorities have not determined to which gang the picadero was associated.  There are also conflicting news stories about whether the women were sexually assaulted prior to their deaths.  Some forensic specialists denied there was evidence of sexual assault while other sources claim the women were found without underwear and appear to have been sexually molested.

A significant portion of the violence in Cd. Juarez from 2008-2011, which made the city one of the most dangerous in the world, is said to be associated with conflict between the Mexicles and the Aztecas for control of territory and services associated with drug trafficking and drug distribution networks in the local retail part of the business.

The Split Within the Aztecas in 2017

According to Diario de Juárez (click here), using information provided by the State Prosecutor's office,  conflict within the Azteca organization began in June of 2017, when La Linea--the armed force of the Juarez cartel--placed a member of the Azteca gang in charge of retail drug operations within Cd. Juárez.  However, this move was not cleared with Azteca hierarchy in El Paso--the Aztecas operate on both sides of the border in the Paso del Norte region.  Observing the strict rules for internal promotion within the Azteca hierarchy, the El Paso sector of the gang disapproved of the promotion, since there were higher ranking members who were overlooked for this job by La Linea.   

This sector and some of their members in Juárez, broke with La Linea, splitting the Aztecas into two competing groups:  Los Aztecas Nuevos, who still work for La Linea and the Juarez cartel, and La vieja guardia (the Old Guard), who now work with the Mexicles and the Sinaloa cartel.  This split became lethal after May, 2018, and much of the spike in homicides from May until now, according to the conventional wisdom in Juárez,  can be traced back to it.  The alliance between some Aztecas and the Mexicla gangs must have been unexpected, since the rivalry between the two gangs was deadly during the 2008-2011 period and the thirst for vengeance among some of the members must have run high.

Part of the Scene on Thursday night