Top Mexican Drug Cartel Calls Truce ... for One Month

When it comes to Mexican drug cartels, members of La Familia are apparently the good guys. A one-month truce in the western state of Michoacan was announced yesterday in a letter supposedly signed by the gang. In the message, circulated through email and distributed door-to-door in some cities, the cartel reportedly says it will stop criminal activity this month in order to prove that it “is not responsible for the criminal acts federal authorities are reporting to the media," the AP reports.

In the past, La Familia has made other public announcements, insisting that it is actually defending the state against other gangs; but officials say it is actually responsible for kidnappings, extortion, murders, decapitations, and more. Officials say the authenticity of this letter has not been verified, but the cartel has been weakened recently by arrests and deaths. Last month, the cartel’s alleged leader, Nazario Moreno Gonzalez, was killed by police.
(More Mexican drug cartel stories.)