Zetas

The Zetas were once the most feared cartel in Mexico, pioneering many of the terror tactics that have defined the country's gangs ever since.

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Latest News

FEATURED / 16 MAR 2023

The Northeast Cartel has established almost complete dominance of criminal economies in Mexico's border city of Nuevo Laredo.

COCAINE / 18 MAY 2022

Early investigations indicate the CJNG is striking partnerships with drug rings in Guatemala that receive shipments of cocaine from Colombia…

HUMAN RIGHTS / 17 JAN 2022

Reported kidnappings have decreased significantly in Mexico, but in recent years, at least one out of every 10 kidnapping victims…

JALISCO CARTEL / 17 DEC 2021

The United States and Mexico have officially entered a new phase of their partnership to tackle transnational organized crime groups…

COCAINE / 8 NOV 2021

Cocaine, synthetic drugs, weapons, migrants, gasoline - this range of criminal economies has seen violence escalate in Mexico's northern state…

FEATURED / 6 OCT 2021

It was so simple once. The Gulf Cartel and its ancestors maintained control of Tamaulipas for eight decades.

Key Actors

Heriberto Lazcano, alias 'Z3'

MEXICO / 2016-10-20

Heriberto Lazcano, alias "Z3," was a Mexican special forces commander before headed the Zetas’ drug trafficking operations.

Miguel Angel Treviño, alias 'Z40'

MEXICO / JULY 17, 2021

Miguel Angel Treviño, alias "Z40," led the feared Zetas in Mexico before his capture in 2013.

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