The once-feared Zetas have left a powerful imprint on Mexico’s underworld. Their ruthlessness and frequent acts of barbarism affected the way cartels fight each other, and authorities, to this day. On March 14, arguably the most prominent heir to the Zetas, Juan Gerardo Treviño Chávez, alias “El Huevo,” was arrested in Tamaulipas near the US border.
InSight Crime’s reporting laid out how Treviño Chávez, leader of the Northeast Cartel and nephew to the Zetas founders, was one of the most powerful criminal figures along the US-Mexico border. Our article became a reference point for national and international media.
An article in Mexico’s El Economista led with InSight Crime’s report, questioning whether El Huevo’s downfall could aid the CJNG’s expansion along the Mexico-US border. El Debate also cited InSight Crime’s story, highlighting the Northeast Cartel leader’s access to military-grade weapons and diverse criminal operations in the country’s northern borderlands.
The report was also picked up by the internationally-renowned Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), which highlighted the Northeast Cartel’s historic ties to the Zetas.
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