Mexican President Anticipates More Details About Cartel Extermination Center Will Be Revealed Next Week

Mexican president Claudia Sheinbaum announced that the country's Attorney General will reveal its findings regarding the recently-discovered extermination center in the state of Jalisco next week.

During her daily press conference on Friday, Sheinbaum said she didn't want to act rashly and would provide results based on "scientific evidence."

"I am not downplaying the importance of supporting the families of missing persons, so let's not misinterpret that. We will always stand by the victims, but people are making claims about all sorts of things on the property based on a single photograph... Look how many days we've been discussing a topic based on pure speculation."

The Mexican head of state did not give a specific date as to when the results of the investigation will be revealed, but Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero is expected to address the topic during the "Mañanera del Pueblo" on March 17 or 18.

The discovery

On March 5, authorities raided the 9000-square-meter Izaguirre Ranch, located near the village of Teuchitlán, following an anonymous tip.

The Guerreros Buscadores de Jalisco, a collective of families seeking their missing loved ones, arrived at the ranch and found over 200 pairs of shoes, human remains along with numerous personal belongings in a hidden crematorium allegedly belonging to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).

Victims would reportedly be approached by cartel members at bus terminals and on social media with the offer of a well-paying job. Approximately 200 people were recruited to work at the crematorium with only about 30 of them completing their "training."

Security and Citizen Protection Secretary Omar García Harfuch announced that authorities were working to shut down social media accounts potentially related to the operation.

The ranch had been previously raided in September 2024, resulting in the rescue of two kidnapped individuals and the arrest of 10 suspects. Authorities also seized various weapons and vehicles, and found obstacle course, presumably for training cartel recruits, but failed to notice the ovens.