Los Zetas：Los Zetas

Los Zetas, Mexican crime syndicate[1] formed in 1997 as the enforcement arm of the drug-trafficking Gulf Cartel; it broke away as an independent organized criminal enterprise in 2010. The group was known for its violent tactics and tight organizational structure.

Osiel Cárdenas Guillén was competing for leadership of the Gulf Cartel[2], an organized crime[3] group that controlled a significant portion of Mexico’s[4] drug trade from its base in Tamaulipas[5] state in northeastern Mexico. He recruited about 30 former members of Mexico’s special forces, led by Lieut. Arturo Guzmán Decena, and this group formed the core of Los Zetas. After Decena was killed in 2002 and his deputy was captured the following year, Heriberto Lazcano (also known as El Lazco or Z3) took over the leadership of the group.

Cárdenas Guillén was arrested in 2003, and Los Zetas became more directly involved in the drug business. I...