Story By: Jonathan Macias, Sub Editor: Alex Cope, Agency:Central European News
Video Credit: CEN
This is the moment a young boy with a huge machine gun gestures to a tiger behind him and warns the enemies of El Chapo’s alleged former partner-in-crime that the big cat “will eat you”.
In the footage, the armed youngster refers to Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada who reportedly headed the Sinaloa Cartel in partnership with Joaquin ‘El Chapo’ Guzman until the former’s arrest and subsequent extradition to the US in 2016.
‘El Mayo’ is suspected of being the current leader of the notorious cartel in the north-western Mexican state of Sinaloa.
The boy, who has not been named in reports but is said to be around seven years old, warns rivals in the clip: “If you mess with us, the tiger will eat you!”
Local media said that the tiger was not tied up in the video and the youngster was filming just yards from where it was resting.
Videos of minors brandishing firearms have become common in recent weeks and the latest clip follows the news of a 16-year-old cartel member’s death last week.
The teenager, nicknamed ‘Juanito Pistola’, was suspected of being a hitman for the ‘Tropa del Infierno’ (‘Hell’s Troop’) gang, part of the Cartel del Noreste (CDN).
The 16-year-old boy reportedly had his head blown off during a bloody shootout between gang members and the local police.
Nicknamed ‘Comandante Chikitin’ (‘Commander Little’), Pistola was inside a van with colleagues when they were reportedly ordered to ambush a police team in the town of Nuevo Laredo in the north-eastern Mexican state of Tamaulipas.
The bodies of the teenager and six other people were found inside the van after the standoff with cops, according to reports.
The ViralTab page is created by and dedicated to professional, independent freelance journalists. It is a place for us to showcase our work. When our news is sold to our media partners, we will include the link here.
