La Nueva Familia Michoacana Organization
La Nueva Familia Michoacana, (English: The New Michoacan Family), La Nueva Familia (English: The New Family) or LNFM is a criminal organization that specializes in illegal drug trafficking, illegal mining, and extortion. It is currently headed by Johnny Hurtado Olascoaga, alias ”El Pez”, and his brother, Jose Alfredo Hurtado Olascoaga, alias ”El Fresa”. The Organization formed in 2011 after the original La Familia Michoacana lost their power in 2010 with the formation of the Knights Templar Cartel and with Nazario Moreno's suspected death (he was not proven dead until 2014 with a DNA test).[1] The Organization mainly dedicated to drug trafficking and battling the CJNG criminal organization out of Tierra Caliente region in Michoacán and Guerrero. According to The United States Department of the Treasury, the organization is primarily involved in the distribution of cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine to the United States, but it’s also involved in growing Marijuana and Poppy. Many of its leaders have been arrested for threatening and blackmailing people on social media. La Nueva Familia Michoacana operates in at least 35 municipalities in the southern areas of Mexico.[2]
| Founded | 2011 |
|---|---|
| Founded by | Johnny Hurtado Olascoaga, José Alfredo Hurtado Olascoaga |
| Founding location | Michoacan, Mexico |
| Years active | 2011—present |
| Territory | Mexico : Michoacan, Edomex, Morelos, Jalisco, Guerrero
United States : Texas, New Mexico, North Carolina, Georgia, Washington, D.C. Asia : China |
| Ethnicity | Mexican |
| Activities | Drug Trafficking, Murder, Extortion, Kidnapping, Blackmailing, Robbery, Illegal mining, Torture |
| Allies | Los Viagras (Armed wing) Los Blancos De La Troya (Enforcer Wing) Guardia Michoacana (Armed Wing) Cárteles Unidos Cartel Del Camaleón Cartel Del Abuelo Los Reyes Cartel De La Virgen Los Revueltas Los Tenas Los Pantanos Sinaloa Cartel Mexican Mafia Bloods Crips |
| Rivals | Jalisco New Generation Cartel La Familia Michoacana |
Social media threats
In 2019, a leader from the cell called El Zarco threatened El Mencho by telling him they were going to kill his hitmen by the Balsas River. The threat went viral that a few weeks later CJNG members threatened to assassinate El Zarco.[3]
Sanctions
In November 2022, the United States Department of the Treasury sanctioned La Nueva Familia Michoana and its alleged leaders Johnny Hurtado Olascoaga and Jose Alfredo Hurtado Olascoaga pursuant to Executive Order 14059. The Treasury alleges the group is implicated in a mix of criminal and drug trafficking activities, including the cultivation of opium poppy and U.S. distribution of heroin and, in an emerging trend, “rainbow” fentanyl (pills and powders whose bright colors, shapes, and sizes are marketed to young users).[4][5]
References
- Grillo, Ioan (2016-02-11). Gangster Warlords: Drug Dollars, Killing Fields, and the New Politics of Latin America. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4088-4603-2.
- "Familia Michoacana - InSight Crime". www.insightcrime.org.
- "Treasury Sanctions Illicit Fentanyl-Trafficking La Nueva Familia Michoacana and its Leaders". U.S. Department of the Treasury. Retrieved 2023-01-21.
- Rosen, Liana; Clare Ribando, Seelke (2022-12-09). "Trends in Mexican Opioid Trafficking and Implications for U.S.-Mexico Security Cooperation". In Focus. Congressional Research Service (IF10400 - Version: 10).