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Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE A teen lottery winner, a vodka boss and Glasgow's Carmela Soprano: Meet the gangsters' molls embroiled in Britain's deadliest gang war
A former teenage lottery winner, a vodka boss and Glasgow's real-life Carmela Soprano are some of the gangster's molls embroiled in a deadly war on Britain's streets. Blood is being spilt as four clans fight over the alleged theft of £500k of cocaine from Ross 'Miami' McGill, a top-level Irish criminal based in Dubai also known as Mr Big. McGill, an ex-Rangers FC hooligan, blames two of Britain's most feared crime families - the Richardsons from Edinburgh and their Glasgow allies, the Daniels. He is backed by their enemies the Lyons gang, also from Glasgow and associates of the infamous Irish Kinahan Cartel. Last week the violence saw senior Lyons figures Eddie Lyons Jnr, 46, and Ross Monaghan, 43, shot dead by a masked hitman as they watched the Champions League final at an Irish bar on the Costa del Sol. But while the kingpins send out their armies on Britain and Spain 's streets, their wives and girlfriends are enjoying the trappings of a luxury lifestyle with mansions, Rolls-Royces and holiday villas. The main allure of this lifestyle is danger and power, the partner of a reformed Scottish gangster told MailOnline. She said: 'Someone who takes the lead and takes charge is attractive and sometimes that bad boy image makes you feel safe and makes you feel more feminine. 'Danger is a bit sexy too, like having sex in a balaclava.' The moll added: 'That goes back to dominance or an authority thing. I like a guy to be in charge and be in authority. For some women it's a protective thing that means they'll look after you. 'A lot of guys want a girl on their arms as part of a show tactic. They don't want to walk down the street with someone the size of a house. The guys want the best of birds because they've got it all and they can probably take their pick. 'Some of the uglier guys don't get glamorous girls unless they've got money or something, so it definitely helps them to look and feel good. They've got all the best designer gear too and the fancy watches and the whole family benefits and is respected better. 'They are famous in their own area like a film star. If you've made the money then you feel like you can get anything you want anyway, including a dolly bird on your arm. 'It's part of the package. Who wouldn't want a sexy girl by their side?' MailOnline has delved into five of the most glamorous Scottish gangsters' molls - each with their own experiences of love, loss and brushes with crime. From a four-way love war to 'fronting a vodka business for one of the most feared gangs in the world', these are the women behind the men who bring violence to the streets of Britain and beyond... Olivia Newall One of the most secretive molls is Olivia Newall, the girlfriend of Ross 'Miami' McGill, who is said to have started this deadly gang war. Newall has locked her social media profiles and there are few images of her online — perhaps in a bid to fly under the radar. Her cousin Lloyd Cross is the right hand man of Jamie 'Iceman' Stevenson and both men were jailed last year for their part in a £100m cocaine smuggling plot. Cross grew up less than a mile away from McGill in Glasgow and the two are known to be close friends. Like McGill, Newall's cousin was a Union Bear - a Rangers FC hooligan group. Yet although her family have had brushed with the law, Newall seems to be living the high life in Dubai with mob boss boyfriend 'Miami'. After achieving a higher national diploma in dental nursing from New College Lanarkshire, she is believed to have moved to the resort town of Estepona on the Costa del Sol, near Malaga. While there, she was pictured with her boyfriend McGill. These days the pair are understood to be living in Dubai. And despite keeping a low profile online, MailOnline has discovered the moll still jets around the world rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous. In January, she was a bridesmaid at the wedding of former Premier League footballer John Fleck. She attended alongside her cousin Jilly Isabella Cross, a fashion influencer with 200,000 followers on Instagram. But despite her life in the sun 4,000 miles from Glasgow, her association with 'Miami' has come back to bite her. Just last week on May 28, her father's black cab was torched outside the Newall family home. Two days later, Eddie Lyons Jnr and Ross Monaghan were killed in Spain a few hours' drive from her old home. Nicola Cassells Nicola Cassells is believed to be one of the most connected molls in the Scottish underworld. First of all, she is the ex-girlfriend of John Bonner, a gangster who drove notorious Daniels enforcer Kevin 'Gerbil' Carroll to an Asda car park where he was murdered in 2010 in what is one of the most infamous gangland hits in living memory. However, the mother-of-three has also allegedly slept with kingpin Steven 'Bonzo' Daniel, who was left with horrific scars after being chased down and slashed with a meat cleaver. More than that, she has also reportedly had a fling with David Togher of the Richardson gang. Speaking to MailOnline, a reformed gangster said: 'Everybody likes a bad boy, especially those who look like one. Birds don't always go for the pretty boys. 'They like the big fancy motors and the money coming in and like people to know they are going with someone important. Cassells is the ex-girlfriend of John Bonner, a gangster who drove Kevin 'Gerbil' Carroll to an Asda car park where he was murdered in 2010 'Being the wife or girlfriend of an associate is just part of the culture here in the schemes. They are involved in the drugs war but that's just their business. 'They fight over their territory like anyone protecting their business. They just get their pals to work for them. 'These guys will meet someone of his own type who is streetwise. He'll always go for the nicest one in the scheme and will marry the most glamorous girl there. 'They all grow up together in the council schemes and work their way up to be lieutenants and associates. 'The girls love it cause they have a better lifestyle and they don't get too involved. 'They usually end up with tanning shops, hairdressing shops or beauty shops as a front though.' Nicola Morrissey Vodka boss Nicola Morrissey, 49, is the moll of 'Johnny Cash' Morrissey. 'Johnny Cash', so called because of his propensity to carry large wads of banknotes with him, is a mobster from the Kinahan cartel, a leading Irish organised crime group with ties to the Lyons in Glasgow. Johnny and his wife share a property empire while enjoying their Nero premium vodka business in the Costa Del Sol. Conservative MP and former crime journalist Russell Findlay, who was targeted in an acid attack by the gangs, told the Scottish Parliament in 2022: 'One Kinahan gang member who has been sanctioned [by US authorities in 2022] is John Morrissey, along with his Glasgow-based vodka company, Nero Drinks. 'The Kinahans are not interested in flogging vodka — their real business is cocaine and heroin. He and his wife share a property empire while enjoying their Nero premium vodka business in the Costa Del Sol. Father-of-two 'Johnny Cash' was arrested in 2022 on suspicion of money laundering 'It is widely known that the cartel is in partnership with Scotland's Lyons gang, making vast profits from killing Scots.' The US Treasury Department said Nero Drinks has been on its radar. A spokesperson said: 'John Morrissey controls and operates Nero Drinks through his wife, the primary shareholder, who is used as a frontperson for his interests.' Father-of-two 'Johnny Cash' was arrested in 2022 on suspicion of money laundering. Nicola was also arrested and bailed as part of the same probe. A raid of their home revealed luxury paintings and wads of cash, while Nicola's interview with Marbella magazine Exclusive Life revealed the true extent of their wealth. The glamorous WAG showed off her pearly whites as she posed beside a £350,000 Rolls-Royce Dawn in a long scarlet dress. In another photo she seemed to be wearing a diamond necklace as she stood in a plunging black dress next to a bottle of vodka and a plush dinner table beneath a chandelier. Kelly Bo Green Kelly Bo Green is the daughter of the late Daniel godfather Jamie Daniel, who died in 2016 from cancer. She was also the girlfriend of infamous Daniels enforcer Kevin 'Gerbil' Carroll until his murder aged 29 in 2010 - a crime that Lyons gangster Billy 'Buff' Paterson, 45, was jailed for life over. Kelly Bo avoided jail herself in 2017 for shoplifting £800 of clothes from H&M shop. She is believed to be part of the same shoplifting gang that her aunt Annette Daniel, 63, is in. Annette has 22 convictions for shoplifting and has spent time in jail for theft. Kelly Bo and Gerbil's £217,000 home near Glasgow was seized after his death, forcing her to move out but just last month, her new home in Glasgow was set alight by McGill enforcers Tamo Junto (TMJ) as part of the ongoing gang war. Despite being part of the Daniel family, she remains most well known for her relationship with 'Gerbil'. As previously mentioned, his murder in 2010 was one of the most shocking underworld crimes in Scotland's history. He was famed for his 'alien abductions', in which rival gangsters were kidnapping, torturing and left half naked on the street, too scared or traumatised to reveal what happened. He built up a long list of enemies - so long in fact that when he was finally killed, the police noted down more than 100 potential suspects. By the time he was finally killed, he had already survived at least three previous assassination attempts. His decision to vandalise the gravestone of the late Eddie Lyons Jnr's brother Garry, who passed away aged eight from leukemia, is thought to be the reason why he was killed. On January 13, 2010, the 29-year-old father-of-two was driven to an Asda car park in Robroyston suburb of Glasgow by John Bonner, who's ex-girlfriend is serial gangster's moll Nicola Cassells. There, he was murdered in the 'most vicious and brutal' way, the judge in his murder trial said. Judge Lord Armstrong added: 'It was not a spontaneous event which happened on the spur of the moment, it was in effect an execution.' Bonner said at the trial that while trying to escape he accidentally pressed lock on the car's doors, trapping 'Gerbil' inside. Two masked gunmen carrying a Ruger .357 magnum revolver and Beretta 92F semi-automatic pistol shot 13 bullets in 25 seconds at 'Gerbil' as he sat in the back of dead his girlfriend's black Audi A3. Since the shooting, Carroll's girlfriend Kelly Bo Green, who is the daughter of the late crime boss Jamie Daniel, has continued to live surrounded by her own gangster family. She has at least two sons by 'Gerbil', who are now thought to be aged 21 and 16, as well as another child. Although images of the gangster's moll are rare, she was pictured at 'Gerbil's' funeral in tinted sunglasses and a black fur jacket. She told mourners at the time: 'He was a lover, a friend, he was my everything.' Caroline Stevenson Notorious crime boss Jamie 'Iceman' Stevenson, who has been dubbed the Scottish Tony Soprano, was jailed for 20 years in 2024 over a plot to import £100m cocaine disguised as bananas. The 59-year-old was finally brought to justice after a five-year police operation involving bananas from South America sent to a Glasgow fruit market, a Kent drugs factory and an Amsterdam brothel. His wife Caroline, 66, enjoys the pampered life of a mob spouse like Carmela Soprano from the hit HBO series and also runs a ice cream parlour in the Possilpark area of Glasgow. Caroline's social media is awash with images of her in designer clothes, flaunting her wealth. While her husband was on trial, she reportedly posted an image of a banana with the words 'bananas can put a smile on your face' and a caption of five laughing face emojis. Stevenson pleaded guilty mid-trial at the High Court in Glasgow in August to two charges - directing a serious criminal offence of importation of cocaine, and being involved in organised crime through production and supply of etizolam, known as street valium. The gangster and five of his associates are now behind bars for a total of 49 years after being snared as part of the joint Police Scotland and National Crime Agency probe, Operation Pepperoni. While her husband was on trial, Caroline reportedly posted an image of a banana with the words 'bananas can put a smile on your face' and a caption of five laughing face emojis The cocaine Stevenson tried to import was hidden in boxes of bananas bound for a fruit market in Glasgow Stevenson's gang had tried to import almost a tonne of cocaine, valued at roughly £100m Pictured are the crates of bananas stacked one on top of the other after being seized Jane Park Jane Park, 30, is most famous for being the UK's youngest Euromillions winner when she won £1million aged 17 in 2013 on a lucky-dip ticket. Since then, she appears to have had a colourful life - including being part of a gangland love war between two gangsters and a fellow moll. Park used to date Richardson mobster David Togher, who previously is thought to have slept with Nicola Cassells. However, Togher is believed to have cheated on Park with his friend Marc Webley's girlfriend Jodie Steele. Webley was also part of the Richardson crew and was jailed for 11 years in 2005 aged 19 for attempted murder after what was described as a failed gangland hit. After Togher was spotted with Steele, Euromillions winner Park started dating Webley, completing the partner swap between the two gangsters. Outside of her relationships with the two gangsters, Park's life has been an array of modelling gigs, motherhood and botched plastic surgery operations. When the former chip shop worker won the lottery in 2013, she vowed to spend it on a customised white Range Rover, a season ticket for her beloved Hibernian and a holiday in Ibiza with her friends. Yet shortly after bagging the fortune, she spent £4,500 on breast implants that took her from a 34B to a 36FF. Jane Park is most famous for being the UK's youngest Euromillions winner when she won £1million aged 17 in 2013 on a lucky-dip ticket David Togher reportedly cheated on Jane Park with his friend Marc Webley's girlfriend Jodie Steele (pictured) Pictured: Jane Park with Marc Webley from the Euromillions winner's tribute to her then-boyfriend after his death Read More EXCLUSIVE How Steven Gerrard's daughter became part of one of the most feared crime families in the world In 2017, a Brazilian butt lift almost cost her her life after she contracted sepsis. Two years later she revealed she was making money by selling racy topless pictures of herself on subscription site OnlyFans. Then in 2023 she told her 222,000 Instagram followers she had flown to Turkey for a second boob job and a round of liposuction. It was in the same year that her relationship with Richardson gangster Marc Webley came to an end when he was shot dead outside an Edinburgh pub on New Year's Eve. Webley had previously taunted his enemies in videos posted to social media, telling them: 'Come and get it... Still at the pub. Wee bit drunk so you'd be at an advantage.' She previously made headlines aged just 17 when she won £1million in the EuroMillions Millionaire Raffle in 2013 Park said she was 'absolutely devastated' by his death. In an Instagram story, she wrote: 'If I could cuddle you again and tell you everything is going to be OK I would give anything to do it Marc. 'The months we spent together taught me some valuable things in life and I'll never forget you. I am absolutely devastated. 'The best bed for you is up there my handsome [love heart emoji].' Jodie Steele Jane Park's former love rival is Jodie Steele, 41, from Edinburgh, who is also the mother of Richardson mobster Marc Webley's two sons. She was reportedly in a relationship with the attempted murderer for around 15 years. But while Webley was in jail, she is thought to have cheated on him with fellow Richardson gangster David Togher, who is currently her partner. Togher was himself only released from prison in 2023 after serving a six-year jail sentence for slashing the face of alleged heroin kingpin Sean 'Lugs' McGovern, 41, in Edinburgh in 2016. Jodie Steele, 41, from Edinburgh, is the mother of gangster Marc Webley's two sons Jodie Steele with Marc Webley and their two sons - the pair were said to have been in a relationship for 15 years While Webley was in jail, she is thought to have cheated on him with Richardson gangster and ex-soldier David Togher, who is currently her partner It is understood that while in prison, Togher and Steele would come together to visit Webley. Former undercover police officer Simon McLean infiltrated Scotland's gangs during his career as a cop. Speaking about Scottish gangsters' molls in general, McLean, who runs the Crime Time Inc podcast, said: 'It's all about the money and power. 'They're more sneaky and dishonest but their job is to look what's considered good in their world and do exactly as they're told - total abuse, control and very disposable. '[It's a] different world and culture. [Molls] are often shared and used as currency. They just use them: ''Take her for the night, it's part of the deal.'' 'It's all very pathetic. They come from the schemes. This is not class women we are talking about.' Steele's boyfriend Togher reportedly escaped an attack as part of the ongoing gang war earlier this year. Togher allegedly ran away from an armed thug who may have been targeting him.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
A prominent Colombian senator is shot and wounded at a Bogota campaign rally
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay, a possible candidate in the country's presidential election next year, was shot and wounded at a campaign rally in Bogota on Saturday, authorities said. His conservative Democratic Center party released a statement calling it an 'an unacceptable act of violence.' The attack took place in a park in the Fontibon neighborhood when armed assailants shot him from behind, his party said. Images circulating on social media showed Uribe Turbay covered in blood, apparently with a head wound, being held by several people. So far, no official report has been released on the senator's condition. The suspected shooter has been captured, Bogotá Mayor Carlos Galán said on the social platform X. But the federal government said it was offering a reward for the capture of those responsible. Uribe Turbay is a right-wing senator and the son of a journalist who was kidnapped and killed during one of the most violent periods in the country, which has been ravaged by a drug war. He is considered a possible presidential candidate in Colombia's election in May 2026.
The Independent
3 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
A prominent Colombian senator is shot and wounded at a Bogota campaign rally
Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay, a possible candidate in the country's presidential election next year, was shot and wounded at a campaign rally in Bogota on Saturday, authorities said. His conservative Democratic Center party released a statement calling it an 'an unacceptable act of violence.' The attack took place in a park in the Fontibon neighborhood when armed assailants shot him from behind, his party said. Images circulating on social media showed Uribe Turbay covered in blood, apparently with a head wound, being held by several people. So far, no official report has been released on the senator's condition. The suspected shooter has been captured, Bogotá Mayor Carlos Galán said on the social platform X. But the federal government said it was offering a reward for the capture of those responsible. Uribe Turbay is a right-wing senator and the son of a journalist who was kidnapped and killed during one of the most violent periods in the country, which has been ravaged by a drug war. He is considered a possible presidential candidate in Colombia's election in May 2026.
Associated Press
3 days ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
A prominent Colombian senator is shot and wounded at a Bogota campaign rally
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) — Colombian Senator Miguel Uribe Turbay, a possible candidate in the country's presidential election next year, was shot and wounded at a campaign rally in Bogota on Saturday, authorities said. His conservative Democratic Center party released a statement calling it an 'an unacceptable act of violence.' The attack took place in a park in the Fontibon neighborhood when armed assailants shot him from behind, his party said. Images circulating on social media showed Uribe Turbay covered in blood, apparently with a head wound, being held by several people. So far, no official report has been released on the senator's condition. The suspected shooter has been captured, Bogotá Mayor Carlos Galán, said on the social platform X. But the federal government said it was offering a reward for the capture of those responsible. Uribe Turbay is a right-wing senator and the son of a journalist who was kidnapped and killed during one of the most violent periods in the country, which has been ravaged by a drug war. He is considered a possible presidential candidate in Colombia's election in May 2026.
The Sun
17-05-2025
- The Sun
Dark side of Brit hols hotspot where innocent tourists are caught in crossfire between warring cartels & drug kingpins
FROM sun-drenched shores to shimmering turquoise waters, these Latin American resorts are a picture-perfect paradise adored by Brits. But behind the postcard-perfect facade, a deadly drug war rages - and tourists have found themselves caught in the crossfire. 10 10 10 Around 1.3 million Brits visited Mexico in 2024, with the UK being one of the Latin American country's top European markets. But over 25,000 people were killed in violent attacks in Mexico in 2024 alone - a deadly toll that has barely budged since 2018. And just this week, the violence hit the internet in real time. On Tuesday, Valeria Márquez, a Mexican model and influencer was shot dead in a hair salon. Though authorities say her death is being treated as a possible femicide - not a cartel hit - it highlights the ongoing crisis of violence gripping Mexico. Most killings in Mexico last year were brutal, execution-style hits - the work of drug cartels battling for control of smuggling routes and turf. In Quintana Roo - home to popular tourist hotspots like Cancún and Tulum - cartel violence is surging. At least five major cartels are battling for control in the state - including the brutal Jalisco New Generation Cartel, the Gulf Cartel, Los Zetas, Cartel del Noreste, and the local 'Cártel de Cancún'. And while it's not their home turf, the feared Sinaloa Cartel is believed to have a presence too, according to expert Bertrand Monnet, who has spent over a decade interviewing its members on the ground. Between January and August 2024 alone, authorities in Quintana Roo opened 3,650 criminal investigations. But that number may just scratch the surface: over 92 percent of crimes in the state go unreported or uninvestigated, according to the National Citizens' Observatory. In February 2024, American tourist Niko Honarbakhsh and Belizean Shawn Billary were gunned down at a beach club in Tulum. While Billary had known ties to Quintana Roo gang conflicts, Niko is believed to have been simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Los Angeles native Niko and her husband, Karl Pearman, used to split their time between their home in Beverly Hills and a condominium in Cancun. While staying in their Cancun condo for a few days as Pearman went on a work trip, she decided to spend a few days in an Airbnb just two hours away. Reports at the time suggested that Billary was being chased by the gang and tried to flee in a restaurant with Niko, when the shots were fired. Pearman, a DEA agent for 15 years, said he and his wife were aware of the State Department's travel advisory, but they figured that some areas of Mexico were safer than Los Angeles. These resorts are like a Swiss Army knife for the cartels. Speaking to The Sun, professor of economic crime at EDHEC Business School, Bertrand Monnet, explained: "Violence is an asset they use to do business - and if there are innocent victims, for them this is not an issue at all. "So that's why it becomes so dangerous for tourists." Monnet, who has interviewed members of the Sinaloa Cartel in both Mexico city and Culiacán, insists that "having spent time with these people, you realise that they don't care at all" about the collateral deaths. "First, they have to kill their enemies - and then they terrify others.' 10 10 Mexico's big cartels are raking in an estimated $20-30 billion (£16-24bn) a year in profits, according to US government figures. Monnet says that cartels exploit tourist resorts as strategic tools for money laundering and criminal operations. Hotels, clubs and private beaches handle vast amounts of cash from visitors, making them ideal fronts for laundering illicit profits. "So they (cartels) fight for control," he says. "There's big competition for these kinds of places, especially in the Cancún region." But laundering money is just one reason - tourists also fuel a booming black market. "These resorts become markets for the cartels to shift drugs, and for the prostitutes they control, and so on," Monnet adds. "It's like the Swiss Army knife for the cartels." While tourists are not usually targeted directly, they can become unintended victims - caught in the crossfire between rival gangs fighting for control. Shooters fled on jet skis A few months after Niko's murder in 2024, a group of three men were shot dead when visiting Mexico for a surfing trip. Jake and Callum Robinson, two surfers from Australia, and Carter Rhoad from California were found dead after a suspected carjacking south of Ensenada in May 2024. Two months later, a 12-year-old boy named Santiago was struck by multiple stray bullets while sitting with his family on Cancún's Caracol Beach. The shooters fled on jet skis, as horrified Scottish tourist Carys Cannon ran for her life. Santiago was treated at the scene and rushed to hospital, where he later died. The Quintana Roo State Attorney General's Office said the assailants were targeting rivals over drug sales. In December 2024, a California couple was killed while on holiday in Michoacán, a state located in western Mexico. Gloria Ambriz, 50, and Rafael Cardona, 53, were driving their 2016 Ford Platinum pickup truck when gunmen began shooting at their car. In March 2023, two American tourists were killed in the crossfire of gangs, while two others were kidnapped. The group of four had travelled through a region labelled as dangerous by the US government when they were ambushed. In an odd turn of events, local mob gunmen left a letter accusing those who killed the Americans of breaking cartel rules. In November 2022, the butchered bodies of three men washed ashore at a beach resort in Acapulco, a city in Guerrero, a state plagued by cartel violence. Tourists discovered the bodies: one had their hand and foot tied to a cement anchor and another lay face-up in the sand. A third body was discovered just over a mile away on Icacos beach. 10 How tourists can stay safe Tourists continue to flock to Mexico - often unaware of the country's ongoing violence. The UK government currently advises tourists to "be very cautious after dark in downtown areas of Cancún, Tulum and Playa del Carmen." Expert Monnet says: "Tourists have to understand the reality of the country." He urges Brits to check trusted sources like the British consulate or Foreign Office before and during their trip. Monnet also advises asking hotel staff about which spots are safe to visit. While kidnappings mostly target locals, "cartels are very opportunistic' and on the lookout to "diversify their businesses", so tourists should stay alert. He warns against using private, unregistered taxis or 'fake Ubers'. Finally, he stresses: 'Don't consume drugs," both for the health risk and because "it's important not to fuel this economy as a consumer." What is the Mexican Drug War? Mexico is grappling with an ongoing conflict between drug cartels, the Mexican and US governments, along with their law enforcement agencies The drug war began in the 1980s, when Mexico became a key transit point for cocaine and other drugs being smuggled to the US In the 1980s, drug cartels like the Gulf Cartel and Sinaloa Cartel started gaining power In the 1990s, competition grew between cartels, leading to greater violence In the early 2000s, powerful criminal organisations, like the Sinaloa, Gulf and Zetas cartels, fought for control of drug trafficking routes and markets In 2006, President Felipe Calderón launched an all-out war on drug cartels, deploying the military to fight them - this is seen as a major turning point, sparking a surge in cartel violence In 2010, the Sinaloa Cartel and Los Zetas cartel became the dominant forces, leading to brutal turf wars By the 2010s, the murder rate in Mexico soared, with tens of thousands of deaths related to the drug war In 2014, 43 college students were kidnapped and likely killed in Guerrero, reportedly due to collusion between police and drug gangs In 2016, El Chapo Guzmán, leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, was captured after escaping prison twice In 2024, top leaders of the Sinaloa cartel, including the son of El Chapo, were arrested by US authorities Today, Mexico's drug war continues with reported violence, more cartels and civilian casualties How US and Mexican crackdowns could shift the drug war Mexico's drug war has never just been between the cartels - to a large extent, it's a battle between suppliers and consumers, cartels and the US, the historic destination for Mexican drugs. Almost all of fentanyl - the "silent killer drug" - intercepted at the US-Mexico border comes from Mexico, according to data by the US Customs and Border Patrol. Trump 's return to the US presidency in January ramped up the pressure on cartels. In February, the US slapped "global terrorist" labels on eight Latin American drug gangs, six of them Mexican. Trump even threatened a 25 per cent tariff on Mexican goods unless drugs - especially fentanyl - and migrants stopped entering. In response, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum launched a crackdown on cartels, sending 10,000 National Guard troops to the border and hundreds more soldiers to Sinaloa state. By February 27, nearly 30 suspected cartel figures were handed over to the US. Monnet acknowledges the effort, saying: "The government of Mrs. Sheinbaum has adopted a very good strategy: they have upgraded the resources of the state's forces, the police, the intelligence and so on, to try and fight against the cartels. "But it's not sufficient, of course, because they [cartels] have billions of dollars." Discussing the US' crackdown, he says: "Maybe Trump's pressure on the cartels will slow down the operations and so on - but it's not sufficient." 10
