2019 Mexican National Guard operation to capture Ovidio Guzmán López
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On 17 October 2019, a convoy consisting of 35 police officers and soldiers drove up to Ovidio's house in the Tres Ríos neighborhood of Culiacán, Sinaloa.[7] Initial government reports claimed that this convoy was doing a routine patrol of the area at the time and only approached the house after being fired upon,[8][9] but after the battle, authorities admitted that the arrest was a pre-planned military operation done in response to a U.S. extradition request.[10][11] Four people, including Ovidio, were found inside at 3:00 PM local time.[7]
Battle
Around 700 cartel gunmen began to attack civilian, government and military targets around the city,[1] despite orders from Ovidio sent at security forces' request.[10] Massive towers of smoke could be seen rising from burning cars and vehicles. The cartels were well-equipped, with improvised armored vehicles, bulletproof vests, .50 caliber (12.7 mm) rifles, rocket launchers, grenade launchers and heavy machine guns.[8]
56 prisoners in the city's prison rioted, took weapons from guards, and escaped in what The Daily Beast said "appeared to be a planned attack".[12][13]
In the end, Ovidio was released after the cartel took eight servicemen as hostages,[14] including one captured from local barracks in front of his children.[15]
Aftermath
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador defended the decision to release Ovidio, arguing it prevented further loss of life,[9] insisting that he wanted to pacify the country and did not want more massacres,[16] and arguing that the capture of one drug smuggler could not be more valuable than the lives of innocent civilians.[17] While admitting that the security forces underestimated the Cartel's manpower and ability to respond,[18] López Obrador also clarified that criminal processes against Ovidio were still ongoing,[19] sending 8,000 troops and police reinforcements to restore peace in Culiacán.[1]
Police officer Eduardo Triana Sandoval was ambushed at a strip mall and assassinated on 8 November 2019.[20] Many media outlets claimed that he took part in Ovidio's arrest,[21][22][23] however Cristóbal Castañeda Camarillo, head of Sinaloa State Police, stated he only took part in subsequent "containment actions".[24]
^Vizcarra, Marcos (21 October 2019). "Suman 14 muertos por balaceras en Culiacán" [There are 14 dead in shootings in Culiacán]. Reforma (in Spanish). Archived from the original on 31 July 2020. Retrieved 23 October 2019.
^Castañeda, Jorge G. (23 October 2019). "Opinion: The Bigger Story Behind the Humiliating Release of El Chapo's Son". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 2 November 2019. Retrieved 3 November 2019. The battle of Culiacán illustrates that the Sinaloa cartel is no weaker today than before the war on drugs began. [...] Days before the battle of Culiacán, 14 policemen were massacred in the town of Aguililla, in the state of Michoacán [...]
^Serrano, Gladys; Hernández, César; Mercado, Dulce (25 October 2021). "Las voces del 'jueves negro' en Culiacán" [The voices of 'Black Thursday' in Culiacán]. El País (in Spanish). Retrieved 22 March 2024.
