Cancun murder surge fueled by alleged drug queen's turf war
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Forensic technicians work at the Blue Parrot nightclub after a gunman opened fire early on Monday, killing several people and injuring others, during a BPM electronic music festival held at the venue, in Playa del Carmen, Mexico. (REUTERS/Victor Ruiz Garcia)
An alleged drug queen and her gang — who have ties to El Chapo’s Sinaloa cartel — are believed to be responsible in part for the surge in violence that has ravaged Cancun over the past year, according to a report.
Leticia Rodriguez Lara — who goes by “Dona Lety” and “La 40” — and her alleged gunrunners have wrested control of narcotics sales in the tourist hotspot and nearby resort Playa del Carmen from rival cartel Los Zetas following a murderous turf war, Nine News in Australia reported Wednesday.
The murder rates in Cancun have doubled in a year, with 113 people killed so far in 2018.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The opioid crisis in the US has also had an indirect role in the staggering stats.
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The cartels, seeing opportunity in a hungry US market, have started to switch from growing marijuana to harvesting opium poppies to manufacture heroin, according to USA Today.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Deadly battles have erupted between competing cartels over the valuable poppy-producing territories in these once-bucolic seaside regions.
And the cartels, such as Lara’s, have also been extorting local bar and restaurant owners for large amounts of cash, Nine News said.
Lara was a former federal police officer before she became one of the only women in Mexico to run her own drug gang.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The 48-year-old druglord has been wanted by authorities since 2012 and was arrested in August. Her son was also charged.