The Gulf Cartel continues to run a complex surveillance network throughout the border city of Reynosa, Tamaulipas, that includes TV cameras, lookouts, and its own clandestine radio network. The network gives the Gulf Cartel eyes and ears throughout the city, not only to keep rivals out but also to prey on the public.
The city of Reynosa is currently controlled by the Metros faction of the Gulf Cartel, one of the six Mexican cartels designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the U.S. government.
Credit: Tamaulipas State Police
This week, the Tamaulipas State Police tracked down some of the cameras in the network, finding a total of 16 that had been hidden in billboards, light poles, and other high structures. The cameras provide the criminal organization with a bird’s-eye view of the city. The cameras had been outfitted with solar panels and were wirelessly connected to a cartel network. The discovery is not the first of its kind in Reynosa since, as Breitbart Texas has been reporting for years, the Gulf Cartel has been running its surveillance operation within the city.
In a similar operation, authorities found several cameras in the border city of Matamoros, Tamaulipas. However, those cameras did not have solar cells and were plugged into the power supply of nearby businesses. Local business owners claimed the Gulf Cartel had threatened them: either allow them to install the cameras and keep quiet, or else.
Credit: Tamaulipas State Police
The Gulf Cartel has been linked to thousands of abductions, ransom kidnappings, and murders along Mexico’s northern border. Despite efforts by law enforcement in recent years, the criminal organization has been able to operate with relative impunity due to the complicity of state government officials at the highest levels. Breitbart Texas reported that the current Tamaulipas governor, Americo Villarreal, had the support of factions of the Gulf Cartel and other criminal organizations during his campaign for office. The cartels not only helped finance his campaign but also threatened locals into voting for their candidate.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at [email protected].
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at [email protected].
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