Cartel violence and recruitment tactics in Jalisco, Mexico

Criminal organizations in Jalisco, Mexico, are utilizing social media platforms like TikTok to recruit young individuals for cartel activities. In one documented case, a young man from Sayula was lured by a profile offering high-paying jobs, only to be taken to a training camp known as ‘La Diestra’. There, he underwent several weeks of training in combat positions and the assembly and disassembly of long weapons before being deployed to various locations.

In a separate incident in the Arenales Tapatíos neighborhood of Zapopan, Jalisco, armed men in vehicles abducted four young men: Dilan Federico Ramírez Zavala, José Carlos González Vázquez, Jorge Daniel Camacho Flores, and Alan Osiel Zaragoza Mendoza. Video footage captured the rapid abduction on September 14, showing gunmen firing at the victims before forcing them into vehicles. Families of the missing individuals have held demonstrations to demand their location and continued search efforts.