Canadians Asked to Avoid Non-Essential Travel to Mexican Regions Due to Violence After Drug Cartel Arrest

A truck burns after being set on fire amid an eruption of violence following the arrest of Ovidio Guzman Lopez, an alleged high-ranking member of a Mexican drug trafficking cartel, in Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico, on Jan. 5, 2023. Martin Urista/AP Photo

The federal government is asking Canadians to avoid all non-essential travel to over a dozen areas of Mexico due to widespread violence and security operations underway in the state of Sinaloa, particularly in the cities of Culiacan, Mazatlan, Los Mochis, and Guasave, following the arrest of the son of a former cartel drug lord.

Mexican law enforcement captured Ovidio Guzman Lopez, nicknamed “The Mouse,” on Jan. 5, one of the sons of former Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquin (El Chapo) Guzman and allegedly a notorious high-ranking drug dealer wanted in the United States on drug trafficking-related charges. He was taken by helicopter to Mexico City following his arrest in Culiacan, capital of the northwestern Mexican state of Sinaloa, which is just over 1,200 kilometres’ driving distance from Mexico City.