Two major cocaine seizures in Mexico this month, including a rare operation in a state neighboring Mexico City, suggest cartels are moving larger quantities of the drug to the capital to meet a spike in demand linked to the World Cup, according to analysts.
On the 22nd, security forces reported that they had seized just over three tons of cocaine in two parts of the country: the western state of Guerrero and the central state of Tlaxcala.
Six security experts interviewed by the Reuters news agency pointed to the World Cup as a likely reason for the cocaine passing through Tlaxcala, a landlocked state that is not known as a trafficking route.
“The increase in demand expected for the World Cup in Mexico City may have led criminal groups to increase their inventory in warehouses near Mexico City, which facilitated such a large seizure,” said Andrés Sumano, a security expert at El Colegio de la Frontera Norte in Tijuana.
“Just like any company does at large events… Large groups dedicated to drug trafficking have more drugs in warehouses to be able to meet demand,” added Sumano.
Three drug traffickers in Mexico City interviewed by Reuters said they had seen demand increase as a result of the football tournament, for which Mexico was expecting 5.5 million visitors.
A Mexican drug dealer who asked not to be identified said that selling drugs is a business, and if the customer wants something, then they will have to find ways to fulfill the request. The trafficker said that international events such as the World Cup are always a good opportunity to boost transactions.
Neither the Mexico City government nor the presidency responded to a request for comment. Authorities did not link the seizures to the World Cup in the interception statement.
Antonio Martínez, spokesman for the government of Tlaxcala, said that the seizure in the state “does not constitute evidence that Tlaxcala is an operation or distribution center for organized crime, nor is there any information that allows linking this fact to international events.”
Vicente Sánchez, a researcher with Mexico’s National Research System, said a link to the World Cup seemed the most likely explanation for there being such a large quantity of cocaine being stored at a site in Tlaxcala.
“The hypothesis is that this unusual seizure in Tlaxcala may be linked to the use of drugs, such as cocaine, around the World Cup, especially given its proximity to Mexico City,” he said.
