A team of cartel gunmen tortured and killed a rival before hanging him from a bridge in Veracruz. The incident is one of the latest acts of violence involving various criminal organizations’ fight for control of local drug routes and illegitimate businesses.

This week, a group of gunmen from “Grupo Sombra” hung the body of a man identified as “El Jarocho” from a bridge in Tuxpan, Veracruz.

In a video, members of Grupo Sombra question El Jarocho about his criminal activities and his boss, “Commander Mono or Monkey.” El Jarocho said he was responsible for murders, extortion schemes, kidnapping cases, and other crimes.

GRUPO SOMBRA Los registros de FEGS, datan de Marzo 2016 ex integrantes del Cartel del Golfo, ex policías federales y Estatales se presentaron como un grupo justiciero patrocinado por empresarios para defender al Estado de Veracruz de secuestro y extorsión acusando al CJNG pic.twitter.com/IjhY58pbFc — Unidad De Inteligencia Ciudadana (@UnidadDeInteli1) September 9, 2019

The victim purportedly confessed to leading local Los Zetas cartel efforts involving kidnapping cases. After the confession, a distorted voice from one of the gunmen says they are not revolting against the government — they are fighting criminals.

Next to the victim’s body, the cartel gunmen hung a banner claiming that government officials were working with Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion (CJNG). In late August, a group apparently from CJNG torched a bar in Coatzacoalcos, trapping dozens of patrons and employees inside. The attack killed 30 individuals and injured a dozen others.

Official intelligence obtained by Breitbart Texas revealed that Grupo Sombra consists of former Gulf Cartel members and state police officers who fight against Los Zetas and the CJNG for control of Veracruz. The criminal organization has, at times, claimed to be a self-defense group.

Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to the Mexican States of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Nuevo León, and other areas to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles are published in both English and in their original Spanish. This article was written by Jose Luis Lara, a former leading member who helped start the Self-Defense Movement in Michoacán.