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 Rojos and Los Ardillos both originated from the Beltrán Leyva Cartel and were two of several groups that splintered from that cartel in the period following the death of its leader, Arturo Beltrán Leyva, in 2009. Los Rojos have had a larger area of influence in the Guerrero and Morelos state with the control over several drug trafficking routes in addition to making money on extortion and kidnappings. Los Ardillos have on the other hand been concentrated to a few municipalities in Guerrero state and have not been considered as a cartel of any larger significance.

By the end of 2013 and in 2014 Los Rojos had several of its leaders arrested or killed which led to the weakening of the group. Los Ardillos took advantage of this situation and started to challenge Los Rojos, especially in and around the towns of Chilapa and Chilpancingo in the center of Guerrero state. Parts of this mountainous region are used for growing opium poppies and the control over these areas brings large revenues.

Clashes between Los Rojos and Los Ardillos led to an increase in the number of killed in drug-related violence in the area already in 2014, but it did not reach the UCDP threshold of 25 battle-related deaths until 2015 when between ten and twelve people were killed in a clash west of Chilpancingo in May of that year.

The non-state conflict between Los Rojos and Los Ardillos was first included in UCDP data in 2015.