Amid Mexico's Cartel Wars, Body Found Inside Plastic Drum While Another Left in Middle of Road

A body of a dead man was found inside a plastic drum in Mexico's state of Guanajuato, which is plagued by turf wars between Mexican drug cartels.

According to Periódico AM, the police were informed about the location of the body in Lago de la Esperanza street at Lagos neighborhood in Celaya past 5 p.m. on Friday.

Aside from the man's body, authorities said they also found black plastic bags inside the blue plastic drum surrounded by trash. However, they did not reveal what was inside them.

Authorities have yet to determine the exact cause of death of the victim, who has not yet been identified. However, the man's body, which was brought to the forensic medical service SEMEFO for autopsy, reportedly bore signs of physical abuse.

On Thursday night, a man was found dead in Privada Soledad street at San Miguel Octopan town in Celaya, Periodico Correo reported.

Authorities identified the man as Oscar Daniel, alias "El Cabe." Police found the 36-year-old man lying on the road with gunshot wounds to his head.

Witnesses told investigators that the man was walking on the street when the suspects approached him and shot him several times. Investigators, who are yet to establish a motive, are now probing who killed the victim.

Recent Killings in Mexico's Guanajuato State Amid Mexican Drug Cartels' Bloody Turf Wars

The number of violent crimes in the cartel-plagued Guanajuato state continues to rise as Mexican drug cartels fight over territory.

On Thursday morning, four bags with human remains were found outside a grocery store in Opalo Street at Tinaja de Bernales community in Irapuato City. A green cardboard was placed on one of the bags, with a message from an alleged drug gang.

In Celaya City, a dead man with a plastic bag covering his head down to his waist was found under a bridge in the community of La Cruz around midnight of Wednesday.

The hands of the victim, who was wearing black denim jeans, were also tied behind his back. Authorities said the man had gunshot wounds. A cardboard with a message was also left on top of the body.

In Resurrección town, also in Celaya, two men, who were in their 60s, were shot in front of a church on Thursday afternoon. One of the men died in the hospital due to gunshot wounds to the abdomen and chest. The second man was reportedly in stable condition after he was shot in the left arm.

On Wednesday afternoon, two men in Celaya's Arboleda de San Rafael neighborhood died instantly after armed men broke into their house and repeatedly shot them. After firing 10 bullets, reports said the hitmen immediately boarded a vehicle and fled the scene.

Last week, at least 21 people were reported dead in Guanajuato in just 24 hours. The victims, consisting of men, women, and children, were found dead in several municipalities on January 17, with their bodies riddled with bullets.

A week before this, at least seven people were killed in two attacks in the state. Two men and two women were reportedly killed on the morning of January 9 after armed men entered a property near Acámbaro. In the evening, two men and a woman were murdered inside a house in the center of Irapuato.

Pending data for December 2021, Guanajuato is reportedly destined to be named the state with the most homicides for the fourth consecutive year.

From January to November last year, the state recorded 3,239 homicides. Baja California followed with 2,800 homicides.

Guanajuato's population is only five percent of Mexico's population. However, it reportedly accounted for about 13 percent of the country's murders in 2020.

Mexican Drug Cartels Battling for Power And Territory

The Jalisco cartel has been fighting to take over territory in Guanajuato from local drug gangs. According to Border Report, the state is the scene of a bloody turf war between the Jalisco cartel and the home-grown Santa Rosa de Lima gang.

The bloodbath in the state reportedly started in 2018 when the Jalisco New Generation Cartel or Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG) moved into Guanajuato. The Jalisco cartel is infamous for its public displays of violence and military power.

According to the U.S. State Department, the Jalisco cartel is considered "to be the most violent drug trafficking organization currently operating in Mexico, with the highest cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine trafficking capacity."

Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera is currently leading the cartel. As he continued to evade capture, the U.S. government offered a $10 million reward for information leading to his arrest.

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Adrianna Grant