MONTERREY, Nuevo Leon – Multiple cells of independent meth dealers managed to grow in power and size to the point where they began to actively clash with other drug cartels who are trying to control all the drug markets.

Unlike the border cities of Reynosa and Nuevo Laredo where large scale gun-battles are commonplace, the violence between cartels and independent cells in Monterrey manifests itself in the form of targeted assassinations. The violence comes after the Cartel Del Noreste faction of Los Zetas made a big push to control the distribution of meth in the Monterrey metropolitan area.

One of the most recent hits took place this week in the bathroom of an amusement park called Bosque Magico (Magical Forest) when a gunman approached Rodolfo “El Rodo” Hinojosa Hernandez and shot at him four times with a 9mm handgun. One of the shots struck Hinojosa in the head killing him almost instantly. Two other gunmen waited for the assassin outside of the amusement park inside an SUV with Tamaulipas license plates. Authorities believe the murder is tied to a turf war with the CDN-Los Zetas or that it could be payback for other murders tied to a drug gang led by El Rodo.

Law enforcement sources revealed to Breitbart Texas that El Rodo was the leader of an independent cell of meth dealers who operate out of the suburbs of Santa Catarina, Garcia, and Escobedo. Law enforcement sources revealed to Breitbart Texas that the group led by El Rodo operates under the name La Linea, however, they have no connection with the La Línea faction of the Juárez Cartel.

In addition to his criminal activities, El Rodo also produced independent rap videos with a rap group called Low Barrio 1613.

Hinojosa’s body was identified by his wife Yaneth Herrera Campos who was recently arrested along with her husband in a drug raid tied to the distribution of five kilograms of meth. It remains unclear how the two were out of prison after their arrest since El Rodo had a pending arrest warrant. He previously managed to beat other murder charges due to a lack of witnesses. Breitbart Texas reported on multiple cases where Mexican judges have dismissed or released cartel operators in Mexico under suspicious circumstances.

Editor’s Note: Breitbart Texas traveled to the Mexican States of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, and Nuevo León to recruit citizen journalists willing to risk their lives and expose the cartels silencing their communities. The writers would face certain death at the hands of the various cartels that operate in those areas including the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas if a pseudonym were not used. Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles are published in both English and in their original Spanish. This article was written by Tony Aranda from Nuevo Leon.