Who are the "Mata Zetas"?

A few days ago, I started seeing Spanish-language media reports about a group of Mexican hitmen killing...other hitmen. Here are a couple of translated excerpts from these reports:

"Inside an abandoned truck in a residential neighborhood in Cancun, Quintana Roo State, were found the bodies of three men, handcuffed and with plastic bags on their heads. Together with the remains was a note with the message: 'We are the new group Mata Zetas and we are against kidnapping and extortion, and we will fight them in all states for a cleaner Mexico.'" Link to El Universal Article

"A video on YouTube confirms the existence of a group of hitmen dedicated to the capture and killing of members of organized crime groups. The group calls itself 'Mata Zetas' and previously denounced a series of crimes by leaders and members of Los Zetas." Link to Terra.com.mx Article

Analysis: Normally I'm the one providing you, the reader, with some answers and explanations, but the phenomenon of 'Mata Zetas' and other vigilante groups in Mexico is still pretty new to me. I recently sent out an email to colleagues asking if they had information about an anti-Kidnapping vigilante group in Coahuila being reported by the Saltillo Vanguardia, but that group seems to be an unknown as well. Unfortunately, I have more questions than answers about the "Mata Zetas," namely, who created them, who leads them, and who funds them? I'm personally not a huge fan of vigilantism (although I am a huge fan of Jack Bauer), especially when the corpses start piling up. It's very possible, and even likely, that the "Mata Zetas" don't have the best interests of a "cleaner Mexico" at heart, and are just a front for one of Los Zetas' competitors - likely La Familia Michoacana or the Sinaloa Federation.

A theory that's a little more out there, yet concerning nonetheless, is that the "Mata Zetas" are being honest about their intentions, and could possibly be unofficially sanctioned by the Mexican government. I don't consider myself to be a conspiracy theorist, but I'm thinking of this possibility because we've seen something similar occur in Colombia - although the parties involved are a little different. In the 1980s, Pablo Escobar created his own private army of enforcers because he was getting tired of his crew members getting killed and operationg being disrupted by the Marxist FARC guerrillas. These paramilitaries eventually grew and morphed into the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC), which was designated as a terrorist organization by the US in 2001. Anyway, the AUC was made up of a LOT of former Colombian army soldiers, and dozens of Colombian congressment are jailed and awaiting trial for providing support to the AUC. Many Colombians don't blame them; the AUC had the same mission as the Colombian army and the government - to get rid of FARC and National Liberation Army (ELN) terrorists. Could the "Mata Zetas" be or become to the DTOs like the AUC was in Colombia to the FARC and ELN? I'm curious to see where their notes - and deeds - pop up next.

Comments

[Cordileonis]

I can't agree with you more Icif. It is the people of Mexico who will liberate themselves from such chaos and torment. If I could stand at a podium and announce somethi g to the Mexican peoole it would be this.
"Citizens of Mexico, unite together to end fear, violence, and torment from these evil cartels. Let us fight back and strike fear in the heart of those who have murdered our loved ones and crushed our society as a whole. Let us be a fighting force who shows no mercy as no mercy has been shown to us!". "Let us go now and make haste!".....Pretty good huh?...lol...

~Cor di Leonis~

[Ghost V]

If anything, the Matas Zetas are a lot like the PEPEs (people persecuted by pablo escobar) the vigilante group that were victims of escobar, and not escobar hiring sicarios to protect himself from the FARC. After escobar was killed, in actuality, the leaders of PEPE later formed the AUC. Your comparison of the Colombian and the Mexican situations are really faulty and unnecessary, whereas Mexico is across the street from one of the most affluent countries in the world, and Colombia is basically a third world country plagued by civil war for the past century and societal problems a thousand times worse than Mexico. The only similarity between the two is merely the language they speak, and the drug(s) they export. And referring to Colombia, as Sartre once said, and I'm paraphrasing this, "terrorism is a terrible weapon, but the oppressed have no other".

I hope the Mata Zetas do accomplish what they set out to do, because apparently everyone else in the world is just too busy to help Mexico deal with this problem, which they inadvertently helped create. These people murder each other not for the peso, the peso is worthless, they do it for the almighty dollar. I mean really, the problem isn't as bad as it looks. If you get a weak person and ask them to pick up a 50lb. stone, they will struggle. A stronger person will not only pick up the stone, but they will be able to throw it.

But really, there's a reason why journalists drop like flies: they're doing something properly. As soon as society learns to protect the worthwhile journalists exclusively, the ones who aren't afraid to stick their neck out to get a real story, we will continue to live in a world where anything written by a coward with a degree, who only got the degree in the first place because he/she was too weak to wield a shovel, we will continue to idolize ignorance and deceit. The bad journalists stick their head in the sand at the first sight of trouble and write garbage articles that are based on 10% facts, 10% speculation, and 80% undeveloped imagination.

[loen]

@ Ghost, you seem to be a Mexican or have a lot of its bad side of culture (although there is a universe of good sides), for I am now living in Mexico and am not from Colombia (but another latinamerican country), but I often see how mexicans need to say they are the best of the world, or whatever but always comparing themselves with "the world", knowing often very little of the rest of this planet. I guess it's a reaction of a identity trying to struggle against the - sorry the expression - arrogant identity of the neighbor which holds itself for the most important country in the world. But in your case you even need to depreciate other countries. Shame on you. At the same time, you won't be able to open your eyes to see that Mexico is across the street of being again 3rd world, with all its corruption and political impunity.
I think the article could be better, but ok, its an analysis, not a photo-story, and your respect for other opinions - that point is really a sad story.
I agree with the comments that Mexico is getting to be like Colombia in the worst times. In other countries where the mexican Cartels are replacing the colombian ones, its said that the new ones are bloodier.

@ Anonymous: You seem to know and see, but just one point: the cartels always have killed and spread blood. And every time more, also of innocents, for example in the north. So, they aren't innocent, but yes, Zetas are worse.

@ Jay Lee: sorry for saying this, but how naive can you be? of course, give everyone a firearm, for the drug dealer always come alone with very little weapons, and has no colleagues... And yes, let all the world follow the weapon laws of the US and we will have as little violence, school shootings and so on as them....

[Ghost V]

@loen
it's a good thing no one pays you to think.

[Archangel]

Los Pepes took out Pablo's muscle and facilitated Pablo Escobar demise.
Largo Viva El Mata Zeta!!!!

[Pissed-off Mexican]

I'm a Mexican living in the US, I travel constantly via automobile from the US to the center of Mexico and once there I travel a lot within the country. I am out and about the country at all times day and night and have never seen or suffered any incidents of violence that get reported. I don't doubt at all that my country is being terrorized by criminals for profit, but I ask myself, how can all these people (narcos) go about their business without deep complicity of the establishment, I mean, you have military checkpoints throughout the country and most large cities have a handful of roads in and out, you can blockade each city and truly check everyone moving in and out if they choose. I'm sure that the police agencies have a list of people of interest and could easily capture them if they choose too. The problem is that once they capture a criminal, the legal system allows them to evade justice, or live a luxurious life inside the prisons allowing them to continue their criminal activity. What they have to do is execute all these criminals as soon as enough information is extracted from them, by any means possible including torture, and also to pursue their families (since they are benefiting from their crimes, and are well aware and I'm sure complicit in the same). If they destroyed the criminals and handed long sentences to their families, even them most savage criminals would think twice about continuing in their careers. I mean, they are in the drug smuggling for profit, some of them I'm sure are psychopaths that enjoy the killing of unarmed powerless people, but most of them are in for the money. I'm sure that the self-preservation instinct is more powerful than greed especially if their entire family is thrown in jail. As for allowing normal people to bear arms, I'm all for it, true criminals have more powerful weapons, but I would rather die trying to defend myself and my loved ones that becoming a victim of these parasites. If the people are allowed to arm themselves, these scum will realize that they cannot victimize people without repercussions and sometimes dying in the process, I have seen several incidents in which the people from a small town feed-up with police abuse have linched them. Criminals watch TV as well if the people are allowed to defend themselves, they confine their criminal activity to drug smuggling instead of terrorizing the Mexican people.

[Charles]

where are photos of the current zeta leadership?