Cartel Gunmen Dump Nine Bodies in Central Mexico, Points to New Turf War

Authorities in central Mexico continue to look into the killing of nine men after gunmen dumped their bodies in a rural area. The incident raises concerns over what appears to be the start of a new turf war in the once-peaceful state of Queretaro.

On Tuesday morning, Angel Rangel Nieves, the top police official in the city of San Juan Del Rio, Queretaro, confirmed the discovery of nine bodies that had been dumped in a rural area near an oil distribution line. Mexican military forces checking on the oil lines found the bodies and alerted local police, who in turn called the state attorney general’s office, Rangel said without going into details of the crime scene.  Local news reports claim the bodies had been bound, gagged, and shot in the head execution style.

The gory crime scene comes just days after authorities confirmed the discovery of another body with a cartel message in the state capital of Queretaro, Queretaro. According to Mexico’s Proceso, in that message, Cartel Jalisco New Generation (CJNG) took credit for the killing, claiming that their boss’s orders were to “clean up,” referring to the killing of rivals on their turf.

Just last week, also in Queretaro, authorities found the dismembered remains of another man inside a plastic container. A similar case took place on December 1, when gunmen also suspected of being part of CJNG left two dismembered bodies inside ice chests in Queretaro.

Queretaro managed to avoid the levels of extreme violence that has plagued most of Mexico until recent months.

The spike of violence in Queretaro is reportedly linked to expansion efforts by CJNG, something similar to what happened in the once-peaceful state of Guanajuato, where that criminal organization set off a fierce turf war that turned that state into one of Mexico’s most violent regions.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..