Mexican authorities continue delivering blows to the Sinaloa cartel organigram with key arrests to high-profile leaders. This time around, a special operation conducted by members of the National Guard and Mexico's Secretariat of Defense (SEDENA) among others, captured Joel "N," also known as "La Morsa" on Jan. 27 in the Benito Juárez borough, near Mexico City's downtown area.
Authorities say La Morsa is "responsible for the production and confection of fentanyl" in the municipality of Elota, Sinaloa. Besides his role as a fentanyl producer, authorities say he is linked to Aureliano Guzmán Loera, the older brother of Sinaloa cartel co-founder Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán.
La Morsa is believed to be in charge of managing and supervising clandestine laboratories —also known as narco labs— in Elota, where fentanyl and other synthetic drugs are produced. He also counted with jurisdiction over the cartel's territories in Mazatlán, Sinaloa, and in Mexico City
During the operation, authorities seized a handgun, a small bag of cocaine and three bundles with a crystalline substance. According to the Secretariat of Public Safety and Civilian Protection (SSPC), authorities identified "a public servant" that allegedly offered the suspect housing while in Mexico City.
"A woman was identified, who currently serves as a public servant, who offered him housing and protection in multiple properties," said SSPC in a statement.
Although her name was not revealed, investigations by Infobae Mexico found that Joel "N" was the brother of María Eugenia Medina Miyazaki, a former local deputy in the municipalities of Elota, Culiacán, San Ignacio and Cosalá, representing the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI).
During her time as a politician, Eugenia Medina served as a councilor for Elota between 2011 and 2013. According to reports, La Morsa and Aureliano "El Guano" Guzmán form part of a group that is protected by former public servants, which includes Eugenia Medina.
Who Is El Guano?
Aureliano "El Guano" has been involved in the Sinaloa Cartel for years, though he has remained in the shadows compared to his brother. According to reports from Mexican and U.S. authorities, El Guano has been responsible for overseeing drug production and trafficking in remote areas of the Sinaloa mountains, particularly in the regions of Badiraguato, one of the strongholds of the cartel.
While El Chapo became the public face of the cartel's rise, El Guano was an essential part of the family's drug empire in the background. He is also the leader of his faction within the Sinaloa Cartel called "Gente del Guano" (GDG), whose security chief, given the alias Luis "N." or "R8," was taken into custody in July.
Originally published on Latin Times
