A top Sinaloa Cartel leader was killed by Mexican forces while cartel relatives enjoy protected lives in the U.S. thanks to a federal deal.
At a Glance
- Jorge Humberto Figueroa (“El Perris”), a Sinaloa cartel leader, was killed by Mexican military forces
- The DEA had offered a $1 million reward for his capture due to fentanyl trafficking
- Figueroa was linked to “Los Chapitos,” the violent faction run by El Chapo’s sons
- A U.S. deal granted entry to 17 relatives of cartel leaders after Ovidio Guzman’s arrest
- “Los Chapitos” have used tigers and torture in cartel violence
“El Perris” Neutralized in Cartel Crackdown
Mexican military forces have killed Jorge Humberto Figueroa, alias “El Perris,” in a deadly shootout that marks a rare high-profile victory in the country’s ongoing drug war. The DEA had placed a $1 million bounty on Figueroa for his role in trafficking fentanyl into the U.S. and orchestrating mass-scale money laundering for the Sinaloa Cartel. His death comes amid intensifying violence between rival factions within the cartel, with over 1,200 deaths reported since September.
Figueroa was aligned with “Los Chapitos,” the brutal wing led by El Chapo’s sons, who are battling the faction loyal to El Mayo Zambada for control. While Mexican officials touted the kill as a blow to cartel leadership, the drug flow into the U.S. remains unimpeded, enabled by what critics describe as dangerously lax American border policies.
Cartel Relatives Welcomed into the U.S.
The shock over Figueroa’s death is compounded by revelations that 17 family members of Sinaloa cartel leaders—including El Chapo’s ex-wife and daughter—were allowed to enter the United States legally under a backchannel deal with federal authorities. The arrangement followed the 2023 arrest and extradition of Ovidio Guzman, El Chapo’s son, who is now in U.S. custody.
Critics argue the deal undercuts public trust in U.S. border security. While American families endure the fallout of a fentanyl epidemic and border towns grapple with rising violence, cartel elites’ relatives reportedly live freely in America. These revelations highlight a stark contradiction between enforcement rhetoric and federal actions that appear to accommodate those tied to narcoterrorist groups.
Torture, Tigers, and a Toothless Response
Figueroa’s “Los Chapitos” faction has become synonymous with extreme brutality. A 2023 U.S. Department of Justice indictment accused the group of using tigers to kill rivals and deploying grotesque torture techniques to consolidate power. Figueroa was also identified as a key operative in the 2019 siege of Culiacán, when cartel forces violently pushed back against Ovidio Guzman’s capture, prompting Mexican authorities to release him temporarily in a now-infamous concession to cartel pressure.
Recent immigration and border policies are drawing sharp criticism from security experts and lawmakers who view the death of “El Perris” as a symbolic but ultimately ineffective measure. Without firm control of the southern border and stricter enforcement, they argue, the U.S. continues to enable cartel operations—both through drug imports and now, by sheltering their families.
As the fentanyl death toll climbs and cartel warfare rages, the killing of one kingpin offers only a brief pause in a much broader crisis. Until systemic changes are made to border enforcement and policy consistency, victories like this will remain isolated—and largely symbolic.
