Mexico Seizes Improvised Armored Vehicles as US Detains Suspect in 2013 Autodefensa Leader Murder

The Mexican army recovered two homemade armored vehicles – a Ford F‑150 and a RAM pickup fitted with custom steel plating – and a .50 caliber Browning machine gun during a patrol in the mountainous area of Concordia, Sinaloa. The vehicles were found abandoned near the hamlet of Pánuco after a pursuit; one was burned by its occupants. The seized weapons were handed over to the Federal Public Ministry for investigation, with no arrests reported.

U.S. immigration officials have detained Rogelio N., known as “El Conejo,” who authorities say fired the .50 caliber rifle that penetrated the armor of a truck belonging to Hipólto Mora Chávez, the founder of a self‑defense movement in Michoacán, in 2013. Mora’s brother confirmed the arrest and called for his extradition to Mexico. The suspect faces charges connected to the ambush that killed Mora and the subsequent incineration of his vehicle.