Juárez Cartel (Carrillo Fuentes Organization)

The Juárez Cartel controlled the Ciudad Juárez-El Paso corridor under Amado Carrillo Fuentes (“The Lord of the Skies”), who earned his nickname by using Boeing 727 jets to transport cocaine from Colombia. At his peak he reportedly moved $25 billion worth of cocaine. His 1997 death during plastic surgery triggered a succession crisis.

Under his brother Vicente, the cartel fought the devastating Juárez War (2008-2012) against the Sinaloa Cartel’s incursion, during which Ciudad Juárez became the “murder capital of the world” with over 3,000 homicides in 2010. The cartel’s enforcement arm La Línea and the Barrio Azteca gang carried out extreme violence, but the Sinaloa Cartel ultimately prevailed. The Juárez Cartel was significantly diminished by the mid-2010s.