#341 Katarina Szulc - Cartels Are Recruiting Drone Operators From the Ukraine War

What you'll learn

• 1 (01:07) **Katarina Szulc Returns – Ukraine Trip & Valeria Marquez Update** - Szulc describes her recent reporting in Ukraine and updates the Valeria Marquez TikTok-murder case, including the arrest of R1 for the mayor’s murder and the ongoing search for R1’s son.
• 2 (17:36) **Cartel Landscape: CJNG Absorbing Sinaloa Factions** - Szulc maps the current power struggle, explaining that CJNG is absorbing the Chapitos faction of the Sinaloa cartel through an alliance against the Mayo faction.
• 3 (24:22) **How Politicians Navigate Cartel Power Shifts** - Szulc explains that politicians survive by playing the game as long as possible, with their hands tied by the threat of murder if they step out of line.
• 4 (29:23) **Rising CJNG Sub-Cell & Why Cartels Use Sub-Groups** - Szulc details the rise of Fuerza Zacatecas Nueva Generación (FZNG), a violent CJNG sub-cell, and explains why cartels operate under different names.
• 5 (38:07) **Internal Rifts & The Millennial Cartel Takeover** - Szulc reveals that after El Mencho’s death, a high-ranking member wanted to escalate violence but was overruled, signaling shifting ideologies within CJNG.
• 6 (46:08) **New Revenue Streams: Beyond Drugs** - Szulc outlines how cartels have diversified into every possible black-market good, making the “end the drug demand” argument a fallacy.
• 7 (56:56) **The US Connection: American Citizens & Human Trafficking** - Szulc explains that the cartels’ success depends on the US, from drug consumption to purchasing stolen crude oil and avocados.

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