Control of businesses, threats, and overpricing of up to 144%: La Familia Michoacana’s extortion network in State of Mexico
The criminal group targeted farms and transport companies, intercepted packages, and imposed quotas under a regime of terror
La Familia Michoacana operates a vast extortion network in the State of Mexico. An operation — part of the national anti-extortion strategy launched by President Claudia Sheinbaum on July 6 — has now revealed the reach of the criminal organization in the southern part of the state. There, the extortionists controlled all types of businesses: hardware stores, butcher shops, farms, distributors, construction suppliers, transportation, and even package delivery. By spreading fear and issuing threats, the network distorted the market, affecting producers, merchants, and consumers in 14 municipalities, including two popular tourist destinations: Valle de Bravo and Ixtapan de la Sal.
The move by authorities, dubbed Operation Liberation, brought together 2,866 members of the Ministry of Security in nearly 700 vehicles Tuesday to raid 63 establishments and 52 buildings in municipalities such as Texcaltitlán, Sultepec, and Tejupilco. The operation resulted in the arrest of eight individuals responsible for coordinating the illegal chains.
Extortion in the area is not limited to protection rackets, one of the most common practices. La Familia Michoacana imposed exorbitant prices and forced merchants to sell or buy at specific locations, the State of Mexico prosecutor explained Tuesday. In municipalities like Malinalco, for example, merchants could not sell cement except in Ixtapan de la Sal or Tejupilco, as part of the conditions imposed by the cartel. A kilo of rebar, for example, went from costing 18 pesos in Toluca to 45 in Valle de Bravo. A chicken thigh, which costs 50 pesos in the state capital, reached 120 pesos in Sultepec. A kilo of wire rod was overpriced by 144%, and a ton of mortar, up to 20%.
They also stockpiled farm animals, chicken, beef, and pork, and tons of illegally stored cement, rebar, and gravel. In addition to stockpiling food, materials, and animals, they intercepted packages. In Tejupilco, the group had a clandestine center where they inspected shipments from companies like FedEx and Mercado Libre. If the package was of interest, they would keep it; if not, they charged the recipient a fee for its delivery.
“Fighting this criminal group was an urgent matter to protect the local economy and the peace of mind of thousands of families,” said Secretary of Security Omar García Harfuch, who is coordinating the plan to combat this epidemic with police and financial intelligence in strategic states, including Mexico City, in addition to campaigns to encourage citizens to report crimes.
La Familia also controlled unions such as the Libertad Union and the Bradosva Union, with which it replaced independent transporters and assumed complete control of supplies in municipalities such as Donato Guerra, Texcaltitlán, and Villa de Allende.
On Tuesday, while the operation was underway, members of groups colluding with La Familia organized simultaneous blockades in 10 municipalities. Highways in Valle de Bravo, Tejupilco, Tlatlaya, Atlacomulco, and Ixtlahuaca were closed for hours by groups of taxi and truck drivers, allegedly under the orders of the criminal group in direct response to the operation, in an attempt to exert pressure.
Extortion is the fastest-growing crime in Mexico in recent years. Although it affects almost seven million people each year, only 0.2% dare to report it, fearing retaliation. Since the national strategy against extortion was launched, the Secretary of Security reported, 48 people have been arrested, 37 of them thanks to anonymous citizen complaints. For her part, Sheinbaum has announced a legal reform to prosecute the crime ex officio, without the victim needing to file a complaint. Sheinbaum’s administration appears determined to end this burden, with uncertainty about whether the offensive will be sustained over time.
La Familia Michoacana has been designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department. Last April, the White House targeted the group, based primarily in Guerrero and Michoacán, for trafficking fentanyl, methamphetamine, heroin, and cocaine, in addition to its involvement in acts of terror and violence in Mexico. The Treasury Department announced economic sanctions against its two leaders, brothers Johnny “El Pez” and Jose Alfredo “El Fresa” Hurtado Olascoaga, and offered an $8 million dollar reward for information leading to their capture.
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