Title: Sinaloa’s Power Struggle: The Cabrera Sarabia Brothers and Their Role in the Current Conflict
The Sinaloa Cartel, one of Mexico’s most powerful criminal organizations, has seen its fair share of leadership changes and internal disputes. Its origins can be traced back to the late 1980s following the arrest of Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo and the subsequent fragmentation of the Guadalajara Cartel. After years of rivalry with the Juárez Cartel and the incarceration of key leaders like "El Chapo" Guzmán and "El Güero" Palma, the Sinaloa Cartel, also known as the Pacific Cartel, began to rise to prominence in the early 2000s, bolstered by the administrations of two consecutive Mexican presidents.
Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán’s 2001 prison escape marked a turning point for the Sinaloa Cartel. Alongside key figures like Genaro García Luna, "El Mayo" Zambada, and the Cabrera Sarabia brothers, Guzmán helped consolidate the empire that now teeters on the brink of a full-blown civil war.
The Cabrera Sarabia family, consisting of brothers Felipe, José Luis, Alejandro, and Alberto, has long been an influential force within the Sinaloa Cartel. Their involvement in the drug trade dates back to the 1990s, when they began purchasing cocaine from Zambada to smuggle across the U.S.-Mexico border. Their alliance with "El Mayo" Zambada solidified after Guzmán’s prison escape, but the seeds of their collaboration had already been sown years earlier.
Vicente Zambada Niebla, "El Vicentillo" and son of "El Mayo" Zambada, revealed to journalist Anabel Hernández that he was aware of his father’s relationship with the Cabrera Sarabia brothers as early as 2006. According to Zambada Niebla, Felipe Cabrera Sarabia, often referred to as "El Rey de la Heroína," was the family’s leader and maintained extensive marijuana and poppy cultivation operations, converting the latter into heroin for sale.
The relationship between the Zambada and Cabrera Sarabia families grew stronger during the Mexican government’s supposed "War on Drugs," which was launched under President Felipe Calderón. This period saw an escalation of violence between rival cartels, with the Sinaloa Cartel emerging as one of the primary beneficiaries.
The bond between the two families was further strengthened by a lucrative business arrangement involving the smuggling of drugs to Chicago. According to Zambada Niebla, it was his father who introduced the Cabrera Sarabia brothers to Pedro and Margarito Flores, who would later turn against the Sinaloa Cartel and testify against "El Chapo" Guzmán.
Fast forward to 2024, and the once-unbreakable alliance between the Zambada and Cabrera Sarabia families finds itself on shaky ground. Rumors have circulated about a potential betrayal and kidnapping of "El Mayo" Zambada by his former allies, the "Chapitos" – the sons of "El Chapo" Guzmán. In the midst of this internal conflict, the Cabrera Sarabia brothers have been mentioned as supporters of "El Mayo" and his son, "El Mayito Flaco," despite their leader, Felipe, being imprisoned since 2011.
The brutal war between the Chapitos and La Mayiza (a faction led by "El Mayo" Zambada) has left hundreds dead in its wake. One of the most recent and chilling examples of this violence occurred in Mazatlán, where four bodies were found dumped alongside a road, bound and gagged, with their heads covered by sombreros inscribed with the letters "MF." This gruesome discovery coincides with the emergence of a group called "La Empresa MF," which has claimed responsibility for several recent attacks and is believed to be led by "El Mayito Flaco."
The Cabrera Sarabia brothers have maintained their allegiance to the Zambada family, despite the changing tides and shifting alliances within the Sinaloa Cartel. As the conflict between the Chapitos and La Mayiza continues to rage on, the fate of the once-mighty cartel hangs in the balance, with the Cabrera Sarabia family remaining an integral player in this deadly game of power and survival.
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