A purported leader of the Sinaloa Cartel revealed in a CNN interview that President Trump’s strict border measures have complicated the operations of the infamous drug trafficking organization.
An unidentified member from El Chapo’s former gang asserted that Trump’s policies regarding immigration and drugs have negatively impacted their underground trade during an unusual chat with CNN’s senior national correspondent, David Culver, while seated in the back of an SUV.
Culver noted, “He claims to have done everything from orchestrating smuggling routes to committing murder.”
When Culver posed the question, “Do you feel that President Trump’s actions have made your work more challenging?” the cartel figure, concealed by a black mask, sunglasses, gloves, and a hat, answered without hesitation, “Oh yeah. Yeah.”
“So it’s getting harder, would you say?” Culver continued to probe.
“Yep,” the alleged gangster confirmed.
The CNN report highlighted that cartels are now demanding significantly more to facilitate entry across the southern US border, with fees elevated from approximately $6,500 to $10,000 per person due to the Trump administration’s crackdown on illegal immigration, as reported by Fox News.
The hardened criminal claimed that despite having taken lives, he views himself as a good person.
“I did what I had to do,” he stated.
During the interview, the cartel leader mentioned he was speaking to CNN with the intention of dissuading others from getting involved in drug trafficking.
“It’s not a life. It’s not good,” he articulated in broken English.
“Once you’re in, there’s no way out,” he cautioned in Spanish.
This anonymous individual isn’t the first Sinaloa Cartel member to attribute difficulties to the Trump administration’s forthright approach in curbing drug and human trafficking across the southern border.
Margarito “Jay” Flores Jr., who earned millions with his twin brother as participants in El Chapo’s cartel, commended the president in a recent interview.
“I believe that the assertive strategy will send a compelling message to every drug trafficker throughout Latin America and in regions like Venezuela that serve as a hub for Mexican cartels and Colombian groups,” Flores remarked to Fox News.
That “assertive strategy” is reportedly still in effect, with the United States preparing for actions against drug cartels deep within Venezuela, according to an NBC News report.