La Nueva Familia Michoacana Organization
La Nueva Familia Michoacana is a criminal organization formed in 2011 after the original La Familia Michoacana lost power in 2010 with the formation of the Knights Templar Cartel and Nazario Moreno's suspected death (he was not proven dead until 2014 with a DNA test).[1] It is dedicated to drug trafficking and battling the CJNG criminal organization out of Tierra Caliente in Michoacán and Guerrero. Many of its leaders have been arrested for threatening and blackmailing people on social media. La Nueva Familia Michoacana operates in the southern areas of Mexico.[2]
| Founded | 2011 |
|---|---|
| Founded by | remnants from La Familia Michoacana |
| Founding location | Michoacán, Mexico |
| Years active | 2011—present |
| Territory | Mexico: Michoacán, Edomex, Morelos, Jalisco, Guerrero |
| Ethnicity | Mexican |
| Activities | murder, extortion, kidnapping, blackmailing, and robbery |
| Allies | Los Viagras Cárteles Unidos La Barredora Many cells affiliated with La Nueva Familia Michoacana |
| Rivals | Jalisco New Generation Cartel La Familia Michoacana |
Social media threats
In 2019, a leader from the cell called El Zarco threatened El Mencho by telling him they were going to kill his hitmen by the Balsas River. The threat went viral that a few weeks later CJNG members threatened to assassinate El Zarco.[3]
Sanctions
In November 2022, the United States Department of the Treasury sanctioned La Nueva Familia Michoana and its alleged leaders Johnny Hurtado Olascoaga and Jose Alfredo Hurtado Olascoaga pursuant to Executive Order 14059. The Treasury alleges the group is implicated in a mix of criminal and drug trafficking activities, including the cultivation of opium poppy and U.S. distribution of heroinand, in an emerging trend, “rainbow” fentanyl (pills and powders whose bright colors, shapes, and sizes are marketed to young users).[4][5]
References
- Grillo, Ioan (2016-02-11). Gangster Warlords: Drug Dollars, Killing Fields, and the New Politics of Latin America. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4088-4603-2.
- "Familia Michoacana - InSight Crime". www.insightcrime.org.
- "Treasury Sanctions Illicit Fentanyl-Trafficking La Nueva Familia Michoacana and its Leaders". U.S. Department of the Treasury. Retrieved 2023-01-21.
- Rosen, Liana; Clare Ribando, Seelke (2022-12-09). "Trends in Mexican Opioid Trafficking and Implications for U.S.-Mexico Security Cooperation". In Focus. Congressional Research Service (IF10400 - Version: 10).