The Gulf Cartel

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The Gulf Cartel The Gulf Cartel is an organized crime unit that operates out of Mexico, primarily distributing drugs throughout the United States. The Gulf Cartel has several rivals, with the Sinaloa Cartel at the head of the pack. This particular type of organized crime unit (Mexican drug cartels) began making an impact in the early ‘80s and has grown stronger and more violent over the years. The structures of the many drug cartels have been referred to as being run like a “business,” but with violent consequences and the Gulf Cartel is no exception. The increase in power within the drug cartels makes the future of organized crime seem bleak regarding society, but positive for the OC units themselves. The 1980s brought about many changes in the world of drug trade. The United States government began blocking trades routes from the Caribbean, forcing drug smugglers to take different routes. The new routes ran through the Pacific and Central American isthmus which led smugglers straight to Mexico. Mexicans can smuggle just about anything across the border and upon this realization came the Mexican drug cartel boom. “The Columbians began heavily relying on Mexican smuggling prowess in the 1990’s as Columbia’s larger criminal factions dissolved into smaller groups” (Mexico’s Internal Drug War, 2006). The Columbians soon began selling cocaine at wholesale price to Mexican cartels, which caused the rival cartels (the Sinaloa cartel and the Juarez cartel) to battle over the control of the profit. “The downstream revenue is largely dictated by points of entry into the United States, such as Nuevo Laredo, and points of reception from Columbia, such as Acapulco” (Mexico’s Internal Drug War, 2006). The demand for drugs, such as cocaine and marijuana, in the United States has steadily increased in the last few decades. In turn the drug smuggling business has
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