After Donald Trump assumed the presidency of the United States, the situation in Sinaloa changed drastically. According to testimonies from drug traffickers, drug lords decided to lay off staff and cut costs to face investigations against them by the Trump administration. Consequently, fentanyl production in the city almost completely stopped.
Although synthetic drug production did not stop in Mexico, the cartels in Sinaloa decided to move their operations to other areas of the country due to intense government repression in the region. While they admitted that production continued in other parts of Mexico, they pointed out that in Sinaloa they had been forced to shut down laboratories due to the pressure and surveillance.
Natalie Kitroeff, a journalist for the New York Times, reported that during her last trip to Sinaloa, she noticed a radical change in the dynamics of the place. Previously, she had visited fentanyl laboratories with special protection, but this time, the drug traffickers were laying off employees and selling properties to compensate for income loss, showing the strong pressure they were under.
Kitroeff revealed that when she contacted the cartel again to obtain information about the laboratories in Sinaloa, she received an unexpected response. The criminals proposed to meet in a hotel instead of a laboratory, indicating a sharp change in their operations. The situation of violence and the need to cut costs were evident.
In conclusion, the arrival of Donald Trump to the presidency of the United States exerted significant pressure on drug cartels in Sinaloa, leading to the closure of fentanyl laboratories and a change in the way they operated. Government repression forced drug traffickers to restructure their activities and take drastic measures to adapt to the new reality.
