The Sinaloa Cartel is unraveling—its leaders captured, its factions at war, and U.S. pressure at an all-time high. Yet in Nogales, Sonora, one of Mexico’s most strategic border plazas, business continues as usual.

In this episode, we travel to Nogales to uncover:

-How the Chapitos betrayed El Mayo Zambada with the DEA’s help

-Why Nogales is vital for drug and human smuggling routes into the U.S.

-First-hand accounts from locals and former smugglers inside cartel operations

-The rise of retail drug markets (“tiendas”) across Mexico

-How cartels enforce their own version of “law and order” in border towns

From bloody betrayals in Culiacán to quiet cartel control in Nogales, this story reveals the new face of Mexico’s underworld.

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00:00 Sinaloa Cartel in Crisis

02:03 Chaos and Violence in Culiacán

04:08 How Drug Trafficking Has Changed

05:24 Nogales: A Key Border Plaza

06:15 The Mechanics of Smuggling

08:17 This Episode Is Sponsored By PrizePicks and Ava!

11:31 Why Nogales Matters

13:01 Inside the World of a Cartel Operator

16:04 This Episode Is Sponsored By FRE

18:27 Cartel Evolution and Internal Rivalries

22:31 US Pressure and Crackdowns on Corruption

26:10 Retail Drug Markets in Mexico

30:05 Different Cartel Rules for Drugs

31:48 Cartel Justice and Crime in Nogales

33:24 Low-Key Tension on the Border

35:35 Why Locals Don't Break Away

36:19 Impunity and the Limits of Law Enforcement

37:12 What Really Matters in the Drug War

38:53 The Future of the Sinaloa Cartel

39:05 Closing Thoughts & Outro

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