MEXICO CITY: Nine people died in Mexico during clashes between rival drug gangs after police arrested a powerful drug lord in the north-western city of Culiacán, reported German Press Agency (dpa).
Eight people have also been injured by gunfire and 14 others kidnapped, said the Attorney General’s Office of the state of Sinaloa in a statement issued on Wednesday.
Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, one of the leaders of the Sinaloa drug cartel, was flown to the US against his will by a rival at the end of July.
Joaquín Guzmán López, a son of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera, who is imprisoned in the US, previously struck a deal with the US justice department for his own extradition, according to official information.
Both reached the US at the same time in a private jet and were arrested by the police. Now, a gang war has erupted in Sinaloa between the two rival factions of the cartel led by Zambada’s heirs and sons of “El Chapo.”
Alleged gang members blocked roads in the city of Culiacán with burning trucks. Members of the public were also attacked or caught in the crossfire, according to officials.
Some 100 soldiers, combat helicopters and planes with artillery have been dispatched to the region.
- Bernama, dpa
