A video has emerged on social media, posted late on Sunday, July 30, in which subjects purportedly identifying themselves as members of the Northeast Cartel dispel rumors of their involvement in threats against Nuevo Leon authorities, including Governor Samuel Garcia Sepulveda.
These armed figures, carrying long guns and outfitted in tactical equipment, with some sporting vests emblazoned with the cartel’s acronym, distanced themselves from a threatening message circulating on social media.
The subjects, seven in total, spoke directly to the camera, ensuring they bore no ill will toward Samuel García or the director of the State Investigation Agency (AEI), Esteban Cantu Montes, both of whom were addressed in the circulated message. Their announcement emphasized, “Regarding the notes circulating on social networks where supposedly we, the Northeast Cartel, declared war on them. This is false.”
These armed individuals reiterated that they held no grudges against Garcia, Cantu, or any other authority. They stated, “They do their job, which we respect, and we do ours, so we are not responsible for what is being circulated.” They said they were not sending threatening messages or notes, indicating that such actions are the work of individuals acting independently under the cartel’s name.
The video emerged as a response to reports circulating on social networks since at least July 27, suggesting that a message was issued by the Northeast Cartel, referencing other criminal groups. The message accused the authorities of allegedly killing innocent people, declared a state of war, and claimed to have located the governor and his family. It also contained threats to torch security institutions accused of alleged extortion and robbery.
In the recent video, one man, holding a blank sheet of paper, addressed the camera directly, stating, “When we are going to do something, we do not threaten or make it public (…) We have nothing personal with them. Those notes or messages are made by people who tie knives.” This individual suggests that impostors attempting to incite conflict have fabricated threatening messages.
The subjects laid the blame for extortions carried out on various businesses in the entity at the feet of these impostors. They asserted, “People use our name to extort money.”
The initial message, purportedly from the Northeast Cartel, made waves on social media, stoking rumors that Miguel Ángel Treviño Morales, alias Z-40, was controlling the criminal organization from prison, having been arrested in July 2013.
Two arrested after armed attacks in Coahuila
Just days before this video surfaced, two individuals were arrested following armed attacks in Coahuila, a neighboring state to Nuevo Leon. These individuals are suspected to be linked to the Northeast Cartel and are believed to be “hawks” or lookouts for the presence of authorities or rival groups.
Following these arrests, Gerardo Márquez Guevara, the prosecutor of Coahuila, reported on July 27 that these detainees could be associated with the Northeast Cartel. In an interview with journalist Azucena Uresti, partially shared on Twitter, he said, “It would be about the Northeast Cartel. We have two detainees identified as hawks.” However, he noted that it was unclear whether these detainees were directly involved in the violent acts against Coahuila authorities.