https://www.kingpinsandcoyotes.com/home daily 1.0 2026-07-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/86063f5a-742b-4007-a8d3-5806b7ecbc95/3d-300.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/e6cfc140-f0c6-4949-8d75-b1fa5666aea2/author+photo+4.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/9827f6f7-1715-4540-9689-dc2826ca3e20/mic-icon.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/9827f6f7-1715-4540-9689-dc2826ca3e20/mic-icon.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/9827f6f7-1715-4540-9689-dc2826ca3e20/mic-icon.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/9827f6f7-1715-4540-9689-dc2826ca3e20/mic-icon.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1773414664869-6WJXMBYIGI6NN6SOO38O/Photo-3.jpg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1773414724567-99DPF6R8O9HAFIQFJ55C/Photo-4.jpg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1773414762555-PAS4MXLAY7O0EP4I9F78/badmfer-adjusted.jpg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1773414834659-WRIQG8QKTELAWMBE30B2/tunnel_2.jpeg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1774993710386-S2RAQ569O0Y97BVQ2P6Q/range+50.JPG Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1774993773864-H7IXQSWQG0J79CYJ62YS/BP+load.jpg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1774993718067-ZVKTKTKFBMV7M79Z687J/SRT-0603+Helo+%26+Vehicle+Assault+067.jpg Home https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1782923783598-V7FZGJ40LRIKH6GN4FWV/BEST+photo.jpg Home https://www.kingpinsandcoyotes.com/bio daily 0.75 2026-07-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/e6cfc140-f0c6-4949-8d75-b1fa5666aea2/author+photo+4.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1773414664869-6WJXMBYIGI6NN6SOO38O/Photo-3.jpg Bio https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1773414724567-99DPF6R8O9HAFIQFJ55C/Photo-4.jpg Bio https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1773414762555-PAS4MXLAY7O0EP4I9F78/badmfer-adjusted.jpg Bio https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1773414834659-WRIQG8QKTELAWMBE30B2/tunnel_2.jpeg Bio https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1774993710386-S2RAQ569O0Y97BVQ2P6Q/range+50.JPG Bio https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1774993773864-H7IXQSWQG0J79CYJ62YS/BP+load.jpg Bio https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1774993718067-ZVKTKTKFBMV7M79Z687J/SRT-0603+Helo+%26+Vehicle+Assault+067.jpg Bio https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1782923783598-V7FZGJ40LRIKH6GN4FWV/BEST+photo.jpg Bio https://www.kingpinsandcoyotes.com/contact daily 0.75 2026-07-14 https://www.kingpinsandcoyotes.com/kingpins-coyotes daily 0.75 2026-07-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/704ee0ff-6906-4f5c-8f15-999d510a5809/3d-300.png https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/923fbe0e-00c3-4d1f-9b98-e078d427ded6/ElChapo.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/ced04780-fe35-4385-b19a-abb7836f1108/cash.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/60ac5838-09a0-49b2-a311-8ddd10f4cc6b/countingcash.jpeg https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/d978834b-82fc-49f7-8fac-e89f78b2996f/rollover2.jpeg https://www.kingpinsandcoyotes.com/resources daily 0.75 2026-07-01 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/912b686f-5bb0-4572-acf2-94159665e44e/Screenshot+2026-03-31+at+2.15.28%E2%80%AFPM.png Resources https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/842ff523-67a2-4920-993a-cc5d011742bf/Screenshot+2026-03-31+at+2.19.42%E2%80%AFPM.png Resources https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/c2e3e7a6-4dba-44e2-9890-7082c9895669/Screenshot+2026-03-31+at+2.23.45%E2%80%AFPM.png Resources https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/f8f975a7-e12c-4875-bbad-e1c213e78828/Screenshot+2026-03-31+at+2.37.20%E2%80%AFPM.png Resources https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/6f12fe0c-9355-44f4-b5ba-83de0886070d/Screenshot+2026-03-31+at+2.43.45%E2%80%AFPM.png Resources https://www.kingpinsandcoyotes.com/the-kingpins daily 0.75 2026-07-14 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/73940aae-32e6-4130-959c-7e87f2d80140/Photo+26-B.jpg The Kingpins Adelmo “El Memo” Niebla-Gonzalez while controlling the Sonoyta, Sonora plaza. As a plaza boss, he oversaw the movement of drugs and humans and coordinated smuggling operations across the border. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/c7c804cf-ed3a-4e68-93f2-4955b38227b5/Photo+40.jpeg The Kingpins Emma Coronel Aispuro, the wife of El Chapo at the time of his capture in 2014. She would later be charged by U.S. authorities and plead guilty to drug and money laundering offenses for her role within the Sinaloa Cartel. Photo courtesy of J. H. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/f7ee1515-62dc-453a-b968-6eacf4857738/chapo-B.jpg The Kingpins Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán prior to his capture in 2014. Behind the mythology was a leader operating within a structured network that extended far beyond any one individual. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/adaf8f73-a1e6-4173-9d3c-eaa03f3c6b87/memo+arrest.jpeg The Kingpins El Memo following his arrest in 2012. Removing a plaza boss disrupted operations but the broader network continued to function. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/ae2c0368-f666-40ba-838a-016a563508d7/Photo+32.jpg The Kingpins Ovidio “Raton” Guzmán-López during his extradition to the United States in 2023. His rise reflected how established networks adapted by elevating the next layer of leadership. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/ee7bb994-e0f6-442a-8621-50a1c1c42ba0/Photo+39-B.jpg The Kingpins Chapo moments after his capture in Mazatlán in 2014. His arrest was a milestone but the system that sustained him continued operating. Photo courtesy of J. H. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/6ffc34c9-21e9-48b2-94f0-fc616314f7c3/Guano.jpeg The Kingpins Aureliano “Guano” Guzmán-Loera, a senior figure within the organization. Leadership within the network was distributed, allowing operations to continue regardless of individual arrests. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/696e6034-7e82-4763-8ee1-67a0a128517d/mero.jpg The Kingpins Baldomero “Mero” Fernández-Beltrán, Memo’s right-hand man, escorted by US Marshals during extradition to the United States in 2025. Roles like his ensured continuity beneath plaza-level leadership. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/25c953d6-3fa3-426f-884b-6710a4371589/Photo+31.jpeg The Kingpins Joaquín “Guero” Guzmán-López, son of El Chapo, upon arrival in U.S. custody in 2024. Figures like him operated within a system designed to sustain continuity across generations. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/67eb2894-89e8-447f-8f3e-d060431e1572/photo+6-B.jpg The Kingpins Plaza Boss Adrian Del Cid Buelna on the day I arrested him in Arivaca, AZ on February 9, 2006. SRT executed the search warrant at Ricardo’s trailer and found him hiding under a bed. Agents didn’t search the jacket he is wearing in this photo and I later learned that he had a .38 Super pistol in the pocket. Such mistakes have proven lethal for law enforcement officers in the past. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/c53127c2-c2b7-4cbc-8bdc-6d19baf4dfe6/serafin.jpeg The Kingpins Serafin Zambada-Ortiz, son of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, following his arrest in Nogales, Arizona. His role reflected how influence extended through family and trusted associates within the broader network. He served approximately five years in prison on drug trafficking charges and is now a free man. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/12257eb7-b34b-4a78-a004-21aea6ca26f8/mayo-B.jpg The Kingpins Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada-García, long considered one of the most enduring figures in the network. His longevity reflects the adaptability and resilience of the system itself. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/476f6d72-8c54-4e28-a9a6-02258131323e/Photo+10-B.jpg The Kingpins Ignacio “Nacho” Paez-Soto following his arrest in Mexico in 2009. As a plaza boss operating across Sonora and Arizona, he helped coordinate cross-border movement within a larger, structured network. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/d005e015-c4a1-450c-a404-a9cd6fee1cde/MayoZ_2B.jpg The Kingpins An undated photo allegedly of Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada-Garcia taken years before his arrest in 2024. https://www.kingpinsandcoyotes.com/inside-the-network daily 0.75 2026-06-30 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/8a37627d-0015-4750-bc14-d765895268a7/Photo+1.jpg Inside the Network My first marijuana seizure in Arivaca, Arizona, May 6, 2001. At the time, it felt significant. In reality, it was a fraction of what was moving through the network every day. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/c9fbb36d-a359-4764-a85d-fa2c0cd61d01/Photo+2.JPG Inside the Network The camper as we saw it coming down a dirt road in Arivaca, Arizona. Inside was more than 2,500 pounds of marijuana yet it was one load among many moving through the corridor. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/315931cf-4d5a-4432-a8f0-b3886c1a8e19/Photo+3.JPG Inside the Network As the door opened, a lookout sat on the toilet holding a rosary and praying, not running. He was one small piece of a much larger operation, and in that moment, he knew exactly what was coming. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/3589d6df-81f0-4129-bd2b-c614c9d54c9c/Photo+4.JPG Inside the Network Nearly 10,000 pounds seized in a single location. And still, it barely dented the flow moving through the network. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/d19ff5c1-4ea9-4b3a-9115-6c044863d560/Photo+5.JPG Inside the Network Marijuana bundles concealed beneath a trailer. Loads like this were built to move unnoticed—hidden in plain sight and designed to withstand scrutiny. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/ed23f7a5-0620-4f36-b1d6-c3639e429992/Photo+7.jpg Inside the Network This is how the network enforces discipline. In August 2015, Adrian del Cid Buelna and an associate were gunned down on a dirt road in Saric, Sonora. Violence wasn’t random. It was a tool used to settle disputes and maintain control. Photo courtesy of Ariete Caborca Noticias https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/030310ee-d9be-462e-9e51-51317acc47b2/Photo+8.jpeg Inside the Network Bundles marked for distribution inside a load tied to Nacho Paez. The symbols weren’t random. They identified buyers and destinations, part of an illicit supply chain that moved drugs with precision. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/dcc78991-fd16-4662-b4a0-72a096297c42/Photo+9.jpg Inside the Network A narcomanta, or a cartel message left after a massacre in Caborca, Sonora. Messages like this were used to threaten rivals, assert control, and enforce territory across the network. Used with permission from Ariete Noticias Caborca. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/5db0dcfa-3d44-4ab2-b8e0-bd3985d68033/Photo+11.JPG Inside the Network The human cost. Drop houses held large groups like this. They were staged, controlled, and moved through the network as cargo. Conditions were often degrading, while the system profited from every step. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/33ed978c-bf8b-4a3f-8fd4-3e0548e90a9d/Photo+12.JPG Inside the Network The system moved efficiently. The people inside it did not. A human smuggling attempt ends in multiple deaths which were considered losses the network absorbed as part of doing business. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/bad0b4bd-3740-4941-a592-dc9a3ee63325/Photo+13.jpg Inside the Network Roberto Ortiz was shot and killed as he pulled into his driveway in Casa Grande. The tight grouping of rounds through the driver’s window reflects the precision of the network’s enforcers. Violence was used deliberately to maintain control and to intimidate. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/7e21ff31-90d3-4bbe-b2c3-ed869243bfe5/Photo+14.JPG Inside the Network Aerial view of the pipeline corridor near Stanfield, Arizona. From the ground, movement looked random. From the air, the pattern was clear, it was a supply route moving drugs and people north, and guns and cash south. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/490c2680-a427-4049-bd7a-4e5d0a1c97a8/Photo+15.JPG Inside the Network Elevated scout positions like this controlled the pipeline. From here, scouts monitored law enforcement and guided loads through the desert in real time. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/a5868e1c-b938-415b-82f5-40df8f69c3a2/Photo+16.JPG Inside the Network Cave overlooking the pipeline route where scouts lived in two-week rotations. Positions like this provided continuous surveillance across the corridor despite the harsh conditions. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/78132d23-8eae-4ce2-b2a2-c91e993dbd42/Photo+17.JPG Inside the Network Inside a scout cave used during two-week rotations to monitor and report law enforcement movements. From the air, we mapped positions like this to understand how the network coordinated surveillance and pushed loads north. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/e8f5c5e1-5659-4899-b168-9aad5f1e4fc8/Photo+18.jpeg Inside the Network A map of the north end of the pipeline near Stanfield, Arizona, built from hours of aerial and electronic surveillance. Scout positions, stash houses, and movement routes revealed a coordinated system shaped by law enforcement pressure and opportunity. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/454af75d-1313-4734-8805-51d696fb60c5/Photo+19.JPG Inside the Network More than $250,000 concealed inside a hollow interior door at a Phoenix stash house. Cash like this moved as easily as the drugs which were hidden in plain sight. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/4f3be4c0-684b-4c62-b20b-7f0c5d9a6bff/Photo+20.jpg Inside the Network Different drugs, same pipeline. Cocaine and heroin moved through the same routes, feeding distribution networks across the U.S. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/3185eb9b-7301-424e-ae3c-f604d1be28ce/Photo+21.JPG Inside the Network This is how the network protected itself. Weapons seized during Operation Pipeline Express, including AK variants and high-capacity magazines. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/3c790fc6-00ad-4e64-a2e0-75abd64b42b5/Photo+22.JPG Inside the Network A load vehicle drove past Ryan and Richard in the middle of the day, with marijuana bundles visible in the back. The proximity underscored how openly the network operated. After a short pursuit, we seized approximately 1,800 pounds of marijuana from the vehicle. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/60fc5539-8e3a-40c3-b79d-06d5ac575515/Photo+23.JPG Inside the Network Under cover of darkness, we tracked the network’s movements in real time. An ATV loaded with marijuana passes through the corridor. One of many loads monitored through our surveillance. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/e7e4e639-d5d5-4d4b-b7ea-aef9c30c1f6e/Photo+24.JPG Inside the Network Two employees of “Memo” on an ATV with several bundles of marijuana wrapped in brown tape passed by in the middle of the day. Nearly every day of the week Memo and his organization were smuggling some sort of drug into the US via the Pipeline route. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/403860a7-5d4e-4987-ad16-54ccb7134afd/Photo+25.JPG Inside the Network Memo’s crew drove heavily loaded vehicles along major smuggling routes in broad daylight. The camouflage cover allowed them to quickly hide the SUV in dense brush if law enforcement aircraft approached. Every movement was coordinated, with contingency plans. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/e39c1d80-5f14-4a83-b0bb-8105f81955ef/Photo+27.jpeg Inside the Network Actual surveillance photo of a Beechcraft King Air carrying cocaine north from the Venezuela/Colombia border. Aircraft like this moved product into the system long before it reached the US/Mexico border. Blacked-out windows concealed the illicit cargo. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/98d8bbf6-b3eb-4dfd-81cd-7bb83ead8969/Photo+28A.jpeg Inside the Network https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/295d4a2e-1879-42fb-ae1e-b6017a581728/Photo+28B.jpeg Inside the Network Cash generated by the network. Even when loads were seized, the steady flow of money allowed operations to rebuild and continue. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/c2edf24a-9e5f-411f-b282-05bbccbc53f0/Photo+29.jpeg Inside the Network Cartel accounting. Each load was documented and tracked to verify delivery and prevent loss, evidence of a structured system, not random movement. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/551a7e91-6881-442a-ad85-9426597b6ebc/Photo+30.jpeg Inside the Network Cocaine seized in Phoenix, marked “WHISKY” to identify ownership within the network. Loads like this moved from South America through the same pipeline into US. distribution hubs. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/55b9a430-c2a1-47fc-9359-3998baa35076/Photo+33.jpeg Inside the Network A bathtub concealing a tunnel entrance inside one of Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán’s safe houses in Culiacán. Identical setups were used across multiple locations. Standardized for rapid escape. Photo courtesy of J.H https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1df35ac4-355a-4d61-83cd-e5169e762c9e/Photo+34.jpeg Inside the Network The escape route used by Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, descending from a concealed bathtub into the sewer system beneath Culiacán. Photo courtesy of J.H. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/159af44d-7aa2-4ca9-86c7-24d3720c6578/Photo+35.jpeg Inside the Network A tunnel connecting the concealed bathtub to the sewer system beneath Culiacán. The sealed hatch prevented flooding—evidence of deliberate engineering, not improvisation. Photo courtesy of J.H https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/e7317455-354a-4239-89a6-f8feffac2465/Photo+36.jpeg Inside the Network The vest and live grenades recovered from the sewer where Chapo fled through. Photo courtesy of J.H. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/da69d0fd-dd35-4daa-b5b2-20ed659a1af6/Photo+37A.jpeg Inside the Network Weapons and drugs moved together. RPGs, ammunition, and cocaine seized from the same load. It was evidence of a network moving product and protection through the same routes. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/43db9711-ee07-480a-8a2a-17a2e83d5e35/Photo+37B.jpeg Inside the Network More protection for high-value loads. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/113945d1-56c0-4520-8f59-ad6a25d6c38d/Photo+38.jpeg Inside the Network El Chapo’s personal pistol, marked with his initials “JGL”, a symbol of the violence behind the network’s leadership. Photo courtesy of J. H. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/b5cd4a98-23e9-4627-84fd-a3c9f34122aa/Photo+41.jpg Inside the Network DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson presented a folded American flag to the widow of fallen Border Patrol Agent Jose “Joey” Barraza. (Photo © Victor Calzada / El Paso Times via Imagn Images, used with permission.) https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/fbd311dc-6671-4831-8c28-c7de0f412ff9/Photo+42.jpeg Inside the Network Aboard an Air Force aircraft during a high-level DHS operational briefing. My role as a law enforcement advisor placed me inside senior leadership discussions shaping national strategy. I am visible in the upper right corner. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/934b81ca-7104-499a-a9e1-dcdeb98a9bf8/Photo+43.jpg Inside the Network Our squad outside the federal courthouse in Brooklyn following the trial of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. I am third from the left. After years of investigations, arrests, and coordination across agencies, one of the most powerful traffickers in the world was finally held accountable. However; the system that made him powerful was still intact and still operating. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/0cdcf1a1-fdbf-4eb8-bbe9-e1a24498213e/Photo+44_Mexico+Map.JPG Inside the Network Map of northern Mexico and the border with some notable locations marked. https://www.kingpinsandcoyotes.com/bonus-photos daily 0.75 2026-07-01 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/bd623c58-032a-4537-9646-881b18e5e692/ATV+on+radio.JPG Bonus Photos Two of El Memo's traffickers head south after dropping a marijuana load at a nearby stash house and were already resupplying for the next run. The rear passenger uses an encrypted radio to coordinate with mountain scouts. Carpet booties on their shoes mask their tracks from Border Patrol and other law enforcement. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/b2d7942a-97fa-4039-ad08-0f2675071e7d/pipeline+overview.JPG Bonus Photos Ninety miles of open desert between the border and Phoenix partly photographed from a CBP helicopter during active surveillance. From the air, the smuggling corridor was obvious. From the ground, it looked like nothing at all. That gap was the network's greatest asset. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/2737a1fa-dfb4-47a6-baa6-4d6ecdf659c1/Backpackers+2.jpg Bonus Photos Marijuana smugglers wait for their load vehicle within feet of our covert camera, unaware they were being watched. Moments like this one took hundreds of hours of surveillance to capture. The patience eventually paid off. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/92ddc49c-00b0-4da3-91e0-b890499c0907/Border+ramping+still+3.jpg Bonus Photos A four-image sequence showing a drug-laden SUV crossing into the US on a makeshift ramp thrown over the border fence near Nogales, AZ. The entire crossing took less than three minutes. The vehicle and the drugs were in Phoenix before most people finished their morning coffee. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/f8f8259b-14e7-48e7-bc23-4f53bf36ffbf/border+ramping+still+1.jpg Bonus Photos https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/cb19525f-e81e-4050-a9a6-2e656719519b/border+ramping+still+2.jpg Bonus Photos https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/14f49ffe-8a6e-41e8-8460-c19d7359f433/border+ramping+still+5.jpg Bonus Photos https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/980514c1-d2fe-432c-a383-1358a5840dd8/black+tahoe+with+tarp.JPG Bonus Photos A drug-laden SUV moves through the Sonoran desert under a camouflage cover designed to defeat law enforcement aircraft. The network ran these loads in broad daylight. The cover wasn't improvised. It was standard equipment, deployed the same way on every run. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/e394b405-ed5f-4286-8f3f-cba68bfe3506/camo+vehicle+cover.jpeg Bonus Photos Full-size SUV's could disappear in the blink of an eye in the vastness of the Sonoran desert. From an approaching law enforcement aircraft, the vehicle simply wasn't there. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/f1fa5ee6-211d-4b9d-8adc-9fe007328cfc/loader+wtih+cammo.JPG Bonus Photos A load driver hangs out the window as the camouflage cover blows in the desert wind with his radio chirping with real-time directions from scouts positioned on mountaintops miles away. Scouts are guiding a multi-million dollar drug shipment around law enforcement in the middle of the afternoon. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/4503b735-9300-436c-8d42-949b1f499dc7/tunnel+house.jpeg Bonus Photos A house in Nogales, AZ, indistinguishable from every other home on the street. That's the point. Beneath it, a tunnel connected the US side to Mexico. The border fence visible in the background was irrelevant since the network was already underneath it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/87ce66d6-74a5-43ef-a665-4e7000ed2e97/tunnel+looking+up.jpg Bonus Photos The inside of a subterranean tunnel beneath the US/Mexico border which are engineered for speed, not comfort. The figure at the end gives you the scale. People and drugs moved through passages like this one around the clock, unseen, beneath neighborhoods on both sides of the fence https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/d4ad9107-3c21-49a0-8f54-ab884afe3a93/close+up+dope+in+tunnel.jpg Bonus Photos Smugglers abandoned this drug cargo mid-tunnel rather than risk capture. The load was disrupted. The organization was not. Within days, another load was moving through the same corridor. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/985ebba9-72c8-40a6-a8ad-6dca7aefdda3/chapo+go+fast.jpeg Bonus Photos The network moved drugs and people by sea, air, and land. This go-fast boat, purchased by El Chapo, was seized as it was being exported through Nogales. This photo was taken the day before El Chapo was captured in 2014. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/457533c7-1d1b-468c-8970-4738fa2a1d5c/del+cid+3.jpg Bonus Photos This is how the network enforced discipline. The vehicle Adrian de Cid-Bulena was in after he and an associate were gunned down in Saric, Sonora. Violence wasn’t random. It was a tool used to settle disputes and maintain control across the organization. Photo courtesy of Ariete Noticias Caborca. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/deabd7d3-7f96-4fa2-90e0-ae13de87692d/PX+drop+house.jpeg Bonus Photos A suburban house in the Phoenix area. The brown stucco matches the desert landscape and the hundreds of other homes identical to it in the neighborhood. Inside was much more sinister than its innocent outward appearance. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/c9543f62-4b57-4d8b-be76-9bf5b34b1f82/DH+boarded+up+window.jpeg Bonus Photos The network’s human warehouse. Drop houses like this held dozens of people captive until payment was made. Windows were sealed from the inside with plywood and screws, ensuring no one got out. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/d95bdcc2-b508-4a5e-b498-35b0654e6bb9/rollover1.JPG Bonus Photos Many migrants never made it to the drop houses. The journey from the border was met with danger and exploitation at every turn. Rollovers like this one often ended with multiple fatalities which was an acceptable loss to a network that treated human beings as cargo. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/a3141943-6a4f-40a4-a0e4-c358ba18d911/dope+plane+crash.jpeg Bonus Photos The network maintained dozens of aircraft ready to make the perilous run from South American jungles to clandestine landing strips throughout Mexico. This plane didn't make it. The pilots who survived simply walked away and got back in line for the next flight. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/62a81a45-3b5c-423f-b409-f2d7ce8e483f/dope+to+semi+2.jpg Bonus Photos Members of El Memo's organization transfer narcotics under the cover of darkness but were caught on camera by agents using high-end optics. Agents logged hundreds of hours of surveillance to document moments like this one. The drugs in this frame were bound for distributors outside Los Angeles. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/5f840547-3586-48a6-9953-b96693fc4f51/dope+to+semi+3.jpg Bonus Photos https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/8d01cc53-8ce8-49c6-8bb9-8f58a12314ae/Garychapotunnel.jpeg Bonus Photos El Chapo's escape tunnel from Altiplano prison. Built to order, engineered for speed, and equipped with a rail system and ventilation. An HSI supervisor examined it firsthand for comparison to tunnels discovered in Nogales. The Sinaloa Cartel didn't improvise their infrastructure. They contracted it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/aa7d153e-5d70-4dca-a8cc-45641d6c0240/sewer+entrance.jpeg Bonus Photos The exit El Chapo used after fleeing Mexican Marines in Culiacán in 2014. This door led into the city’s sewer system, allowing him to disappear beneath it. https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/560fbd44-c5c9-4fdd-9632-c09118c53069/ultra+light+drop+2.jpg Bonus Photos The network didn't always use million dollar airplanes to smuggle their narcotics. This nighttime surveillance photo shows an ultralight aircraft fly into the US and drop its drug cargo, marked by the red arrow to a waiting ground team to transport it to a stash house. The border fence is visible in the backdrop showing the proximity. https://www.kingpinsandcoyotes.com/media daily 0.75 2026-07-02 https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1783017832447-N8XRBIT9CNRVVHEXF782/cbs.png Media https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1783017832435-GKWSJ0K7CFWCD2258B4U/CBS_Evening_News_with_Tony_Dokoupil+copy.png Media https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1783019310443-VTCE5C19LOJY58ND2VDK/discovery.png Media https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/6990f91f4d2b6a67f0c4fa2a/1783017833431-9NIQTS81YRSZDAC8QRUI/hidden-third.jpg Media