A dangerous cell from the Gulf Cartel has been terrorizing the central part of the Mexican state of Tamaulipas with complete impunity despite a heavy presence of military, federal, and state police forces. The cell also caused problems for the rest of the Gulf Cartel for their widespread kidnapping of innocent women to rape them, senseless killings, and violence which has terrorized locals. Mexico’s government continues to turn a blind eye.
The cell is part of the Escorpiones faction of the Gulf Cartel. As the group expands its territories, the faction has been waging a series of turf wars throughout the border state of Tamaulipas and extorting local farmers, cattlemen, and most other local businesses.
Jose Leoncio “El Apa” or El Leo” Hernandez Vizcaya and his four brothers lead the cell.
Jose Leoncio “El Apa or Leo” Hernandez Vizcaya
Jesus Adrian Hernandez Vizcaya
Gumaro Hernandez Vizcaya
Daniel Hernandez Vizcaya
The cell also included two chief gunmen who were Guatemalan immigrants who originally entered Mexico to make their way to the United States but joined the Gulf Cartel instead. The two men are:
Cesar Potbu
Erick Colay
One of the group’s most infamous violence cases took place in December when they kidnapped and murdered two employees from the Padilla city government who tried to interfere as the group was assaulting and preparing to rape in public an innocent woman. The incident took place during a Christmas season party hosted by the city, where the members of the cell showed up and tried to take some women with them. One of the females refused their advances, and they began to beat her in public brutally. Even though there was a police presence in the area, authorities did not intervene. Two city employees tried to stop the assault, but the gunmen kidnapped them and killed them.
Just days before, the gunmen killed a local taxi driver and kidnapped two employees from an internet company. The cell had been based in Padilla and terrorized the surrounding communities of San Carlos, El Barretal, and Nicolas Bravo.
As an aftermath of the Christmas party killing and attempted rape during a city event, the leadership of the Escorpiones faction moved the cell to the city of Soto La Marina, also in the central part of the state. Since their arrival, the group has been able to once again operate with complete impunity without any interference from the Tamaulipas State Guard, Mexico’s National Guard, or military forces.
Editor’s Note: Breitbart News Foundation traveled to Mexico City and the states of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo León to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. The writers would face certain death at the hands of the various cartels that operate in those areas, including the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas, if a pseudonym were not used. Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles are published in English and their original Spanish. This article was written by “Francisco Morales” and “J.C. Sanchez” from Tamaulipas.
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