SUMMARY
The outbreak of fighting between different drug-trafficking gangs in Mexico can be understood against the background of changes in the Mexican political landscape during the last decades. During the 1980s, there was a loose network of drug smugglers controlling their own "plaza" for drug trafficking. Governmental authority was highly centralized under PRI (Partido Revolucionario Institucional, Institutional Revolutionary Party) rule and by bribing high officials, the drug smugglers could control their businesses without getting interrupted by the authorities. When single-party rule started to give way to local opposition these networks and relationships were transformed, to the advantage of some actors but to the disadvantage of others. The drug cartels started to fight each other for control over territory and previous alliances fell apart.
Los Zetas, with its origin in the Gulf Cartel, had experienced few instances of infighting within the cartel compared to its parent organization. However, as several leaders of Los Zetas were arrested and extradited to the US, the cartel became more unstable and struggles for power within the organization or over different geographical areas increased. Arguably, the most devastating arrests was that of Los Zetas’ leader Miguel Treviño Morales in July 2013, as well as the arrest of his successor Omar Treviño Morales in March 2015.
The Topo Chico prison in the town of Monterrey in Nuevo Léon state had by 2016 been in the control of a prison gang called Los Zetas – Jorge Ivan Hernandez Cantu faction, for some time. The gang, named after its leader, consisted of members of the Los Zetas cartel. In addition to that the prison was known for being old and overcrowded, it had been criticized by human rights organizations for the bad conditions the inmates lived in, with most of them lacking running water and electricity, as well as for the prison directors’ inability to stop violence within the prison. This stood in stark contrast to the “luxury cells” that was later found in the prison where the privileged inmates that controlled the prison – i.e. Los Zetas – Jorge Ivan Hernandez Cantu faction - lived; these cells were equipped with large televisions, saunas, air conditions, and other luxury items.
By February 2016 this faction got challenged for their privileged position by the Los Zetas – Juan Pedro Salvador Saldivar Farias faction. The group’s leader, which has given name to the faction, was believed to have been in charge of a region in Tamaulipas on behalf of Los Zetas prior to his arrest. He had been transferred to the Topo Chico prison just a couple of months before the clash took place, having served time in other prisons earlier.
Almost 50 prisoners were killed in the clash, some by knives or other sharp objects, others by blunt objects such as hammers or wooden clubs. Some parts of the prison were set on fire as part of the fighting and a number of inmates were killed by this fire. It was also reported that some inmates tried to break out of the prison, taking advantage of the chaos that arose from the clash.
The non-state conflict between Los Zetas – Jorge Ivan Hernandez Cantu faction and Los Zetas – Juan Pedro Salvador Saldivar Farias faction was first included in UCDP data in 2016. In February of that year, clashes between the two factions had resulted in more than 25 battle-related deaths.
