Whack-a-mole Drug War: Mexico Gangs Spread Tentacles Abroad

More from the strategic analysis group, "Insight-Organized Crime in the Americas"

Mexico Gangs Spread Tentacles Abroad: "Mexico's drug gangs are increasingly developing ties to mafias around the world, from Japan to India, Russia, and Western Europe. ...

As Contralinea reports, while Mexican groups like the Sinaloa Cartel have long had close links with Colombian cocaine suppliers and U.S. drug wholesalers, they are now establishing their presence across the world. In the process, they are carving out links with some of the most established groups in southeast Asia, Europe, and the Indian subcontinent.

While reports of Mexican groups being mixed up in drug rings in places as far afield as Malaysia and West Africa is nothing new, recent evidence points to a more substantial, enduring presence in strategically important foreign nations. Not only are they buying and selling large shipments of cocaine, they are setting up shop in local retail markets and carving out toeholds in newly important regions like West Africa and India."