Powerful Sinaloa drug cartel's astonishing spy network as police find hidden cameras

Authorities successful Culiacán, Mexico uncovered the immense 'spy centre' tally by the almighty Sinaloa drugs cartel, which had screens allowing them to way the unrecorded movements of police

A deadly drugs cartel's spy web has been exposed aft constabulary uncovered hidden cameras tracking their each move.

Federal authorities successful Culiacán, Mexico were stunned this week to observe an undercover surveillance centre manned by members of the almighty Sinaloa Cartel. Alongside a cache of weapons, officers recovered 5 screens streaming unrecorded footage from cameras placed successful strategical areas astir the city, including main boulevards and cardinal avenues. Each surface displayed arsenic galore arsenic 30 unrecorded feeds. The centre besides boasted precocious technology which allowed them to spy not lone connected rival gangs, but besides connected the movements of the authorities.

On his TV quality programme Pie de Nota, Mexican writer Luis Chaparro said section authorities sources believed the cartel had utilized this accusation to program attacks and debar arrests. He besides reported that the cartel had established a nonstop transportation to the authorities police's bid centre, meaning that they had entree to the aforesaid images and transmissions collected by section authorities information systems. Mr Chaparro said: "It is not known whether the Sinaloa authorities was alert of this connection, but the information is that the cameras installed by the authorities were besides transmitting to 'Los Chapitos' C4 [command centre]"

The centre was uncovered connected Tuesday by the Mexican Secretariat of National Defense (SEDENA). The raid followed reports of aggregate shootings successful antithetic parts of Culiacán, drafting the attraction of authorities to the area. Alongside the monitors, constabulary besides recovered an arsenal that included 5 agelong guns, 4 handguns, 18 magazines and a fig of explosives.

Feliciano Castro Meléndrez, General Secretary for the authorities of Sinaloa, denied that the cartel had gained entree to the section government's bid centre. He said: "This communications centre that was detected and secured belongs to organised crime, but the authorities C4 has nary transportation whatsoever with this clandestine system".

The Sinaloa Cartel, oregon the Cartel de Sinaloa (CDS) successful Spanish, is 1 of the astir almighty organised transgression groups successful Mexico - and immoderate commentators adjacent judge it whitethorn beryllium among the strongest successful the world. Dozens of radical died successful convulsive clashes successful Mexico's northwest past twelvemonth erstwhile clashes erupted betwixt 2 rival factions of the cartel.

In caller years, fears person grown that progressively blase spy and surveillance exertion is ending up successful the hands of drugs cartels. One anonymous authoritative speaking to the Cartel Project website described the concern arsenic a "free-for-all" and alleged that corrupt constabulary officers were selling connected instrumentality to the convulsive gangs, saying: “The constabulary who person the exertion would conscionable merchantability it to the cartels.”