By News Editor 
The Rancho Izaguirre, located in Teuchitlán, Jalisco, Mexico, was identified last week as a site of significant criminal activity associated with the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) by ‘Guerraras Busquedoras, a group of mothers whose children are disappeared and now have the unenviable responsibility of searching for their bodies or whereabouts. Unfortunately, the group is also faced with threats with organized crime and government officials unwilling to exit their comfortable arrangements with organized crime due to either business arrangements or general fear for safety.
Details: Ranch Izaguirre
This ranch functioned as both a training ground for cartel recruits and an extermination camp. Investigations have uncovered evidence of forced recruitment, torture, and systematic killings. Notably, three large ovens containing human remains, along with approximately 200 pairs of shoes and 400 items of clothing, were discovered on the property. Journalist Ricardo Ravelo and José Luis Montenegro shared that the figure of bodies that may have been incinerated in the camp is closer to 1500. Body disposal is an unfortunately very common practice amongst organized crime figures.
Cartel Denial
In one of the more bizarre episodes around the issue, the CJNG has publicly denied involvement with Rancho Izaguirre. In a video circulated on social media, individuals claiming to represent the cartel refuted allegations linking them to the site, suggesting that activist groups fabricated these claims to tarnish their reputation. They allege that no kidnapped person would be handed a gun after the result and that recruits were among their ranks willingly. Nonetheless, the narrative they espoused seemed to alleged that the ranch was long in the region before their arrival and controlled by another cartel.
Additionally, the CJNG group alleges that the mothers may be tasked with smearing their reputation and clamor that there is generally peace in the rural towns. They appealed that the CJNG is not like Sinaloa. They denounced that the disappearances were not their fault or exclusive to their operations, which is somewhat of a valid point as most of the modus operandi around cartel operations is a shared race to the bottom: no atrocity is exclusive to one group or another.
Most evidence points to the camp’s establishment in 2012 – there exists a possibility that the camp has been part of multiple prior groups operating in the region. It’s unclear who else could be connected to the camp at any given moment or how old the bodies and belongings there were. The state’s intervention would seem to only add to the confusion.
¡Surreal! 🚨¡NUNCA ANTES VISTO! ⚠️
— DomoDeCristal (@DomoDeCristal) March 18, 2025
El #CJNG NIEGA CAMPOS DE EXTERMINIO y aclara TODO. pic.twitter.com/TFD9uISdDm
Unfortunately, an additional insult to injury resulted from authorities that seemed to have wiped clean the crime scene! Earlier today, collectives swooped into the site and found that the entire ranch had been wiped clean. Mothers of the disappeared fear that the evidence in the area was wiped clean and protested in front of local and federal offices.
Mexico’s Attorney General, Gertz Manero, was due to meet with these self organized search blocs, but canceled at the last minute. This has understandably upset the collectives, and they have now denounced irregularities in the investigation, particularly, from municipal authorities who have eliminated previously observed evidence.
Madres buscadoras acusan a la FGR y a las autoridades de Jalisco por ocultar evidencias y “limpiar” el campo de exterminio en el Rancho Izaguirre de Teuchitlán.
— Buzos de la Noticia (@BuzosNoticias) March 20, 2025
“Es una burla. La autoridad hizo un museo del dolor de nosotros.”
Fiscal Gertz Manero canceló su visita, denuncian. pic.twitter.com/jZYxXm74OR