A pair of anti-drugs agents have been found dead in the state of Durango, Mexico. Their bodies were discovered bound and blindfolded this morning.
The soldiers were part of the government’s initiative to combat drug crime in the northern territories. They were allegedly on a mission to infiltrate the Joaquin Guzman cartel. Guzman, alias ‘El Chapo’ is currently Mexico’s most wanted man.
There has been widespread speculation amongst the press and Mexican officials that the drug-lord is in hiding in the Durango region. The government, however maintains they are still unaware of Guzman’s current location.
Guzman escaped from a high security prison in 2001 and since then has been a prominent member of the Mexican drug scene.
A note was found with the bodies of the two unnamed men, reading “neither priests nor rulers will ever get El Chapo”. The “priests” part of the note is thought to refer to a speech made by the Archbishop of Durango earlier this week. He said: “Everybody knows that El Chapo is living in the state.”
This note may represent an overhaul in tactics to fight the drug war which has killed 8,000 people in the last two years. Gangs fighting for territory amidst a government crackdown have been the cause of most of the deaths.
A local resident said that it was previously thought that there were two institutions the cartels would rather not confront – the church and the army. Now it seems nothing is off limits.
In March, Mexico’s attorney general offered a $2m reward for information leading to the arrest any of the country’s 24 most-wanted drug gang chiefs. On 25th of last month the initiative seemed to be making progress when Hector Huerta Rios, a member of the Beltran Leyva cartel, was detained in the northern city of Monterrey.
