The Cadereyta Jiménez Does were 43 men and 6 women whose headless bodies were found dumped on the roadside of the Carretera Interoceánica. Due to testimony from suspects and tattoos present on some of the victims, authorities suspect that most of the victims were members of the Gulf Cartel. However, the possibility of some victims being migrants traveling to the United States has not been ruled out. It is also suspected that there may be 68 victims overall who were reported to be buried by the highway.
Case[]
Discovery[]
At 4:00 am on 12 May 2012, Mexican authorities received a report of bodies being dumped on the side of the Carretera Interoceánica in the town of San Jose, located in Cadereyta Jiménez, Nuevo León, Mexico. When the police arrived, they found bodies scattered in a pool of blood with evidence of significant mutilation. As the bodies were collected and excavated over 2 days, investigators noticed that all of them were decapitated and were in various states of decomposition. Additionally, it was found that most of the bodies were missing their hands and feet. They were found to have been tortured before death and had their remains stuffed into plastic bags.
Due to the proximity to the city of Monterrey, an area where cartels used to stockpile various drugs to transport to United States consumers, and a large number of bodies, investigators quickly determined that the deaths of the decedents were linked to cartel violence. This was further given credence by some of the deceased bearing tattoos linked to the Gulf Cartel. However, due to similar past incidents having victims that turned out to be normal citizens or migrants traveling to the United States, it is not believed all of the victims were cartel members. The case was also suspected to be linked to 18 decapitated and dismembered bodies that had been found in Guadalajara four days before the discovery.
According to residents of San Juan and drivers on the Carretera Interoceánica, a foul odor was noticed in the area days prior, though none suspected the odor to be coming from human remains. Authorities also concluded that the removal of the victims' heads, hands, and feet was done to prevent identification. During the autopsy, the military was utilized to guard the perimeter of the university where it was taking place for the safety of the coroners. Investigators then discovered that the decedents had likely been deceased for at least 48 hours and had been killed elsewhere. Police suspect that the victims were murdered in the nearby state of Tamaulipas before being dumped. Alongside the bodies had been a banner spray painted with "Z 100%", a marking used by the Los Zetas cartel.
Following the massacre, the DNA of the victims was given to El Salvador to compare to their missing persons but received no matches. The Carretera Interoceánica was shut down for a day, and public officials began calling for a crackdown on cartels once more. A blog anonymously documenting the ongoing drug war in Mexico released a video that seemed to show several men dumping bodies next to the highway, lending credence to cartel activity being involved in the deaths,
Arrest of Jesús Daniel Elizondo Ramírez[]
On 17 May 2012, authorities began to suspect that the Gulf Cartel committed the massacre and detained 8 members of it in the town of China, located in Nuevo León. It was initially suspected that the murders were carried out to attract police attention and cause crackdowns in the territory of the Los Zetas cartel. However, investigators concluded afterward that Los Zetas had carried out the massacre. A day after the detainment of the Gulf Cartel members, a military operation in Guadalupe resulted in the arrest of Jesús Daniel Elizondo Ramírez, alternatively known as "El Loco", a member of an important section within the Los Zetas cartel. Ramírez was in a group of hitmen since 2008 that perpetrated armed conflicts in Guatemala, as well as assassinations and kidnappings around Cadereyta Jiménez.
According to authorities, Ramírez had been ordered by higher-ranking members to cause a massacre in Cadereyta Jiménez to stoke confusion amongst the population and authorities. He was told to dump the bodies in the city's main square, however, Ramírez instead chose to dump the bodies next to the Carretera Interoceánica. Following the extraction of information from the perpetrator, police were alerted to 5 clandestine graves in the town of China with the possibility that they were linked to the massacre. However, an autopsy would show that the bodies found in China had been dead long before the massacre victims.
Currently, Ramírez remains in prison. As of 2024, authorities have stated that they still struggle to identify the bodies.
Characteristics[]
- An unspecified amount of bodies bore tattoos relating to the Gulf Cartel, as well as tattoos of the Santa Muerte.
Sources[]
- Amarillo Globe-News
- Reuters
- The Cadereyta Jiménez massacre on Wikipedia