Hours after cars were set on fire in the capital city of Guadalajara, five gas stations were burned in Puerto Vallarta, along with vandalism of several area banks throughout the city.
The activities are suspected to be connected with recent activities in the state by the Jalisco New Generation Cartel in retaliation for arrests and killings of their organized crime members.
The city of Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara are currently under a red alert and maximum security. At this time gas stations have been closed for service in Puerto Vallarta.
The Jalisco New Generation Cartel is one of the most recent and fastest-growing drug-trafficking criminal groups in Mexico. They are currently fighting the Knights Templar Cartel and Los Zetas for control of the cities of Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta in the state of Jalisco and the states of Michoacan and Veracruz. The CJNG also operates in the states of Nayarit, Colima, and Guanajuato. While this cartel is best known for its fights against the Zetas, it has also been battling La Resistencia for control of Jalisco and its surrounding territories.
Most recently the group made headlines with an attack on Single Force personnel returning to Guadalajara after security detail during Semana Santa in Puerto Vallarta.
Jalisco New Generation Cartel expanded its operation network from coast to coast in only six months, making it one of the criminals groups with the greatest operating capacity in Mexico.
Recently the federal government announced ‘Operation Jalisco’, an plan to increase security in the state, however details of the security plans have not been announced.
This is still a developing story and under investigation by authorities so details are limited at this time. As more information is made available we will update this story.
As one reader has suggested, protests and burning of buildings and cars is not uncommon worldwide on Labor Day, being celebrated today. However it’s important to note none of these actions have been accompanied by any protesters and no one or group has taken responsibility.
