A new report from the NGO Environment Investigation Agency (EIA) claims that Mexico’s Cartel Jalisco New Generation (CJNG) is trafficking mercury to South America for its use in gold refining. The report comes just weeks after suspected CJNG gunmen stole more than 33 tons of gold concentrate from a mining company along a highway in Jalisco.
In their report Toxic Tons: Traffickers Leave No Stone Unturned, the EIA followed the trail of mercury from central Mexico to South America, where it is used in illegal mining operations. The group claims that the use of mercury for gold mining is a significant environmental polluter, as the mineral is mixed with gold and then exposed to high temperatures during the refining process.
The report highlights a recent takeover of mercury mining operations in central Mexico by alleged members of the Cartel Jalisco New Generation and urges the Mexican government to intervene. The information points to yet one more trafficking business being tied to CJNG, which has been labelled as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. government earlier this year.
Since the terrorist designation went into effect, Mexico’s top security officials have been pushing a public relations strategy where they embellish raids and operations to give the appearance of fighting drug cartels. However, as Breitbart Texas has reported, drug bosses continue to operate throughout Mexico with almost complete impunity.
As Breitbart Texas reported, CJNG was recently tied to a large-scale theft of gold concentrate along a Mexican highway. In early July, CJNG gunmen hijacked a tractor-trailer moving 33 tons of gold concentrate that was headed to the Port of Manzanillo. A team of gunmen was able to stop the truck and subdue the security detail that was escorting the truck. Since that robbery, authorities have not made any arrests nor revealed any additional information about the case.
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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