Gulf Cartel capture: Why arresting Mexico's Eduardo Costilla matters

While the Gulf Cartel has already been weakened, this arrest is important in a country battling high rates of impunity.

• A version of this post ran on the author's blog, bloggingsbyboz.com. The views expressed are the author's own.

The Mexican government announced the arrest of "El Coss," leader of the Gulf Cartel.

Five years ago, when the Gulf Cartel was still one of the big players, this announcement would have been a huge blow to Mexico's organized crime environment. Today, with the Gulf Cartel leadership decimated and the group in significant decline relative to the other major criminal organizations (Sinaloa and the Zetas), it feels like the Mexican government is just rounding up the last broken parts of a very weakened group.

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Yet, it still matters. The group's weakness does not negate their status as criminals nor the fact they have been responsible for horrific crimes in the country. For a country that struggles with impunity for crimes, it's important to catch these criminal leaders, later if not sooner.

– James Bosworth is a freelance writer and consultant who runs Bloggings by Boz.