Unknown Gender History: María Guadalupe López Esquivel, Hit-Woman Serial Killer

In 2017 María Guadalupe López Esquivel left the city of Tepalcatepec, where she was raised by her farmer dad and housewife mom, and move in with a member of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel in Aguililla, state of the Michoacán. She lived in Apatzingán, until Miguel "N", known as “El M2,” gave her the order to move to the community of El Aguaje. She worked her way up the cartel hierarchy becoming known as the top assassin. She earned the nickname of La Catrina, a folk character who represents what we might call the Mexican “Grand Dame Death.”

“López Esquivel took a liking to actress Kate Del Castillo's portrayal of a female narco boss in the hit Spanish-language series 'La Reyna del Sur.' Oddly enough, Del Castillo along with American actor, director and filmmaker Sean Penn secretly met Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman in October 2015, three months before the Mexican military captured the co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel.” [Adry Torres, Daily Mail, Jan. 14, 2020]

~ Massacre of October 14, 2019 ~

On Monday, October 14, 2019 a group of hitmen from the Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel (CJNG) ambushed a convoy of the Michoacán State Police in Aguililla during a surveillance operation. The attackers, driving in armored trucks, left 13 officers dead. Just hours following the ambush, the Tepalcatepec Community Police revealed the identity of the killers. María Esquivel was directly responsible for directing and perpetrating the mass murder, under the orders Miguel Fernández, alias "M2." Esquivel, then 20-years-old was given the mission of assassinating the police and leaving narcomantas behind with messages threatening of further attacks. A narcromanta is message left by a drug cartel on a cloth banner, usually containing threats or justifications for crimes. The messages, signed “CJNG,” were placed on the windshields of the police vehicles. In a leaked recording, the boss, “M2,” is heard turning instructions to “La Catrina,” who assures him that the mission will be carried out according to his orders.

~ Ambush of January 13, 2020, La Boconda ~

Three months later, a similar attack by Esquivel and her confederates in the same area as the October attack on the military, national guard and police ended disastrously for the gangsters. They opened fire on soldiers and police in the same area where the October ambush occurred. Maria Esquivel took a bullet in the neck and six male gunmen were captured. Footage recorded by the military showed a battered and bloodied Maria Esquivel crouched on the ground, with the terrified expression of a cornered animal on her face, struggling with her breath. La Catrina died of blood loss before reaching the hospital.

[Cesar Contreras, “Ella es “La Catrina”, la sicaria del CJNG encargada de emboscada a policías en Aguililla.” (She is “La Catrina”, the CJNG hitman in charge of ambushing police in Aguililla), Grupo Formula, Oct. 16, 2019]

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