On the morning of this Sunday, January 1, an armed group provoked a revolt in the State Center for Social Reintegration (Cereso) in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, which caused a preliminary balance of 10 custodians murdered, in addition to some inmates who were killed, and around 30 prisoners escaped.
The mayor of Ciudad Juárez, Cruz Pérez Cuéllar reported that in preliminary information there are 14 dead, 10 of them guards and 4 inmates.
Citizens should be calm, although “if there is nothing to do on the street, you do not have to go out,” said the mayor this morning in response to the attack and escape at the Center for Social Reintegration (Cereso).
Three alleged criminals killed and five detainees are the balance that the mayor shared this morning about the confrontations that the Municipal Police have had derived from the escape and riot, likewise, he reported that 14 long weapons were confiscated.
According to the local media report, around 6 in the morning an armed commando aboard between three and six trucks, some armored, arrived at the prison, considered to be of moderate danger, where there were already visitors waiting for visitations, and opened fire, to later enter and extract several inmates, a figure that up to now would be more than 20 escapees.
The riot and escape occurred during family visiting hours, so hundreds of families panicked when they heard gunshots and ran, which the inmates took advantage of to blend into the population.
The rioting inmates burned mattresses, clothing, and furniture, while shots are heard inside the prison.
After 12 noon, the State Attorney General’s Office reported that the situation at the Social Readaptation Center No. 3 in Ciudad Juárez is currently under control.
In a press release, they announced that personnel from the Mexican Army, the National Guard, the State Public Security Secretariat, and the State Investigation Agency, are collaborating with the State Attorney General’s Office to restore tranquility in Cereso.
Similarly, personnel from the Forensic Medical Service and Expert Services carry out the corresponding tasks inside the Cereso.
Los Mexicles, the criminal group fighting for control of the prison
The Mexicles are a gang made up primarily of Mexican migrants deported from the US and are considered highly violent criminals.
Los Mexicles are considered a violent gang that operates in connection with the Sinaloa cartel, however, they maintain rivalries with groups such as Los Chapitos and Los Artistas asesinos, even when they work for the same group of drug traffickers.
Their rivalries with similar groups such as those of Barrio Azteca, lie in the fact that their gang loyalty obeys a delimited territory, that is, these groups focus their attention on the protection of their territory, which can be a few blocks or an entire neighborhood.
The psycho-criminal profile of the members of the Mexicles carried out by the Mexican Association in Legal Psychology and Criminal Law, helps to understand the violence with which the members of this group can act.
Studies indicate that gang membership represents an imaginary youth world that is manifested in symbolic dermographisms, that is, tattoos and initiation rituals, and consequently for the construction of identities and satisfying a need for belonging and group recognition.
The tattoo that indicates belonging to Los Mexicles is an eagle similar to the one used a few years ago in the national campaign “Hecho en México”, because this element reinforces the Mexican identity among its members since a good number of them are deported migrants.
The tattoo that distinguishes the members of the Mexicles is an eagle. Photo: Darkroom
Initiation for new members includes fighting with other members of the gang, committing a crime, or killing a member of the rival group.
A member of this gang who was evaluated by psychology specialists mentioned that to belong to the “clic” it is necessary to demonstrate courage and obedience to the organization.
Young people who join this gang tend to have a need to belong to a group and a need for recognition since they generally come from homes with broken families.
Due to their inclination to criminal behavior from a very early age, these young people are recruited in prisons, for this reason, they present high possibilities of criminal recidivism, in addition to gradually advancing towards crimes of greater impact.
Once immersed in the environment of drugs and gangs, it is usual for them to lose impulse control and their level of danger becomes very high.
They also present self-destructive behaviors because their emotional relationships are not solid. Their loyalty is usually based on territory and not personal relations.
Another big problem that gang members develop is dependence on hard drugs, so they usually obey orders for violent acts in exchange for doses of some narcotic.
The Mexicles are classified as one of the most violent groups in Ciudad Juárez, and the insensitivity with which they carry out their roles in the organization could explain the coldness with which they can attack other people outside the gang environment.
On the morning of this Sunday, January 1, an armed group provoked a revolt in the State Center for Social Reintegration (Cereso) in Ciudad . . .
