Gulf Cartel

Gulf Cartel

Logo of the Gulf Cartel
Founded	1980s
Founded by	Juan Nepomuceno Guerra, Juan García Ábrego
Founding location	Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Years active	1980s−present
Territory	Northeastern Mexico (as well Tamaulipas and Nuevo León) and the U.S. States of Texas, and Georgia
Ethnicity	Majority Mexican, minority Guatemalan
Leader(s)	Francisco Ramirez Panchito, Juan Mejia Gonzalez, Juan Manuel Loza Salinas (alias "El Toro")
Criminal activities	Drug trafficking, money laundering, extortion, kidnapping, human trafficking, robbery, murder, gun-running, bribery, fencing, counterfeiting, police impersonation, arson, hate crimes
Allies	Aryan Brotherhood of Texas Los Zetas(Bravo Group) Los Rojos Los Mexicles Sinaloa Cartel La Familia Michoacana Los Pelones Los Metros Knights Templar Norteños Serbian mafia Sureños Mexican Mafia Italian-American Mafia 'Ndrangheta
Rivals	Los Zetas(Cartel de Noroeste) Black Guerilla Family Juárez Cartel Beltrán-Leyva Cartel Tijuana Cartel Guadalajara Cartel Los Negros (disbanded) Fresno Bulldogs Barrio Azteca Crips Bloods Los Santos Siete Viejo

The Gulf Cartel (Spanish: Cártel del Golfo, Golfos, or CDG) is a criminal syndicate and drug trafficking organization in Mexico, and perhaps one of the oldest organized crime groups in the country. It is currently based in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, directly across the border from Brownsville, Texas.

Their network is international, and are believed to have dealings with crime groups in Europe, West Africa, Asia, Central America, South America, and the United States. Besides drug trafficking, the Gulf Cartel operates through protection rackets, assassinations, extortions, kidnappings, and other criminal activities. The members of the Gulf Cartel are known for intimidating the population and for being particularly violent.

Although its founder Juan Nepomuceno Guerra smuggled alcohol in large quantities to the United States during the Prohibition era, it was not until the 1980s that the cartel was formed and shifted to drug trafficking — primarily cocaine, methamphetamine, and heroin — under the command of Juan Nepomuceno Guerra and Juan García Ábrego.

As of December 2016 Los Zetas Group (Groupo Bravo & Zetas Vieja Escuela (Old School Zetas) made an Alliance with the Gulf cartel to fight against Cartel Del Noroeste (Cartel of the Northeast).