Drug trafficking wreaks havoc in Tijuana

In recent years, Tijuana has been able to diminish crime and violence , after it was known as one of the most dangerous cities a decade ago. However, the situation seems to be changing as a result of several factors explained by EL UNIVERSAL today, in an article done in collaboration with the Border Center for Journalists and Bloggers , an organization that is part of the Mexico Border Investigative Reporting Hub .

In 2019, homicide rates placed Tijuana as the most violent place in Mexico after 6,000 homicides were registered between 2016 and 2019. Moreover, police forces attribute the new violence wave to drug trafficking as between 80% and 85% of crimes are linked to drug trafficking.

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Small-scale drug traffickers

are taking over the streets of the border city. In the last three years, on average 300 people were arrested for carrying marijuana or heroin every day, but this measure has not been useful. What is more, from the 12,308 people arrested, only 1,254 were presented before a tribunal and only 182 were sentenced to prison for exceeding the limit of allowed drug possession , not for drug trafficking . These short sentences are blamed on the Judiciary , it is accused of not “contributing to fight drug trafficking .” At the same time, the Judiciary blames the police and accuse them of irregular detentions that allow criminals to obtain short jail sentences.

Additionally, when we analyze the resources allocated to security institutions , it is clear that they are insufficient. In 2019, the local prosecutor spent MXN $1,483 million; the Judiciary spent MXN $1,000 million, and the police spent MXN $12.5 million. All government institutions contributed to the decay in security yet mutual accusations won’t solve the problem and while officials are engaged in discussions, small-scale drug trafficking is on the rise.

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There is evidence to affirm that authorities in Tijuana have abandoned security tasks . The Mexican city and its inhabitants will pay for the consequences if the government and security forces don’t collaborate to halt crime .

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