Cartels in Mexico are now enlisting former members of the Colombian military.
In a concerning development, Colombian mercenaries are being attracted by offers from states, defense companies, and criminal groups, with Mexican drug cartels being a significant employer. This trend, which has seen an increase, is significantly impacting cartel violence and transnational criminal activities.
These mercenaries, often former military or guerrilla fighters, are hired for their combat skills. They contribute to the cartels’ violent enforcement and territorial expansion. The recruitment of Colombian mercenaries enhances cartel capabilities in Mexico, intensifying violent confrontations, especially amid internal cartel wars like those involving the Sinaloa cartel.
The use of such mercenaries supports cartels' leverage in drug trafficking, extortion, and territorial control, which has international repercussions through increased drug flow, violence, and corruption across borders. The presence of trained Colombian operatives enables more sophisticated operations, including the use of heavy weaponry and explosives, elevating the threat to security forces and civilians.
Cartels hire former military personnel and guerrilla fighters from Colombia, exploiting their combat skills. This is accomplished through illicit networks and middlemen specializing in the mercenary trade. Recruitment targets individuals with expertise in guerrilla warfare, explosives, and weapons handling, often leveraging economic hardship and instability in Colombia.
Some Colombian minors and youths are forcibly recruited by armed groups in Colombia, creating a pool of potential mercenaries that may be sold or hired to cartels transnationally. Cartels also recruit locals and foreigners for specialized roles. For example, Mexican cartels have been reported recruiting Colombian mercenaries for enforcement and military-style operations under trusted cartel enforcers such as Edgar Orozco Cabadas.
Recruitment networks appear sophisticated, involving cross-border coordination with transnational criminal organizations, and possibly integrating foreign training obtained in conflict zones like Ukraine for drone and tactical skills. This global network of criminal knowledge transfer further empowers cartel operations, as some cartel operatives, including Colombians, seek advanced drone warfare training abroad.
This phenomenon highlights the growing intensity of Mexico's cartel wars and the expanding role of Colombian combatants in conflicts globally. Notably, Colombian mercenaries have also been implicated in the 2023 killing of Ecuadorian presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio. All the detained men had previously served as soldiers in Colombia.
This trend underscores the urgent need for international cooperation to address the root causes of this recruitment, such as poverty, instability, and lack of opportunities in Colombia, and to combat the transnational criminal networks that facilitate this trade in human resources.
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