The capture of Tequila’s mayor uncovers a gruesome truth

Stopping cartel government infiltration will take more than switching parties.

Months had passed without any follow up and then, on 12th February, security secretary Omar García Harfuch announced that Operation Swarm had been triggered in the state of Jalisco. In it, over a dozen public officials from the tourist town of Tequila, including its mayor, were arrested by federal authorities. The town is governed by Morena, the ruling party nationally.

Operation Swarm is back. It was initially showcased months ago as the new way in which Claudia Sheinbaum’s government would be tackling organised crime. It took a proactive, intelligence-based approach in investigating not just cartels generally, but the government officials who were actively working with criminals.

The first Swarm sting was carried out in the State of Mexico, with close collaboration between Mexico’s national civilian and military forces alongside the state’s own law enforcement.

Beyond sharing a name, this iteration of the operation in Jalisco felt markedly different. Its differences from the first time it was deployed reveals the worrying truths about criminal infiltration into the government.