Mexican drug cartels are expanding their presence in the United States far beyond the border states that have traditionally been their home, according to an investigation by the Associated Press.
Instead of using unaffiliated middlemen to transfer and sell drugs in the US interior, inner circle cartel members are now being assigned to run drug distribution in “at least nine non-border states” in the Midwest, South, and Northeast of the country, according to AP.
While the cartel presence is an old problem along the US southern border, suspects with strong cartel links have lately been seen in new regions. Direct cartel involvement has been on the rise in Chicago, Atlanta, rural North Carolina, Indiana and Pennsylvania. That Chicago -- a city more than 1000 miles from the US-Mexico border -- recently named the infamous Sinaloa cartel kingpin public enemy number one is illustrative of the far reach of Mexican drug syndicates.
The chance to increase profits drives this change, according to the AP's investigation. The middlemen who formerly sold drugs on behalf of the cartels became unnecessary, and the cartels sought to exert the same level of control in the rest of the US as they do along the Mexico border, the AP investigation found.
Not everyone is convinced that the threat is as severe as portrayed: empirical evidence to support the claim that cartels are taking over direct control of their interior US operations is lacking, and individuals should be “very cautious about the assumptions [they] make,” an expert on US-Mexico relations at the University of San Diego told AP.
US Drug Enforcement Agency data on cartel presence in US cities has showed a marked increase. Approximately 230 communities reported cartel activity in 2008; that number jumped to over 1,200 in 2011. However, while the numbers may suggest drastic growth, the increase is at least partly due to better reporting practices.