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Familia Michoacana

The Familia Michoacana is a once-powerful cartel whose influence drained after the death of its leader in 2014.

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Latest News

CRIMINAL MIGRATION / 15 FEB 2023

In Mexico's hotly contested Tierra Caliente region, one priest is caught between the CJNG and a smattering of violent criminal…

FENTANYL / 6 JAN 2023

Mexico's Familia Michoacana are back in the headlines again. But is it the same cartel as the one that fell…

GULF CARTEL / 30 AUG 2021

It was a Saturday, around 12:30 p.m. local time, when a caravan of three vehicles loaded with well-armed men and…

BELTRAN LEYVA ORG / 12 AUG 2021

Mexico's process of criminal fragmentation has been a slow burn. Many of the country's mightiest criminal groups have been unable…

DISPLACEMENT / 2 JUN 2021

The number of displaced people within Mexico has increased for the first time in three years, indicating that the country's…

HOMICIDES / 24 MAR 2021

A bloody ambush on a police unit in the state of Mexico, in which thirteen officials were shot dead, is…

Key Actors

Servando Gomez Martinez, alias 'La Tuta'

MEXICO / 2017-03-09

Servando Gomez Martinez, alias "La Tuta," was a former high-ranking member of the Familia Michoacana.

José Jesús Méndez Vargas, alias 'El Chango'

MEXICO / 2017-03-10

Jose Jesus Mendez Vargas, alias "El Chango," was the right hand man of the leader of the Familia Michoacana.

Nazario Moreno Gonzalez, alias 'El Chayo'

MEXICO / JULY 24, 2019

Nazario Moreno Gonzalez, alias "El Chayo,” was a founding member of the Familia Michoacana and was killed in 2014.

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