2015 in organized crime

In 2015, a number of events took place in organized crime. The Mexican drug war continued to be a focus throughout the year. ^[1]

Events

January

• January 16 – Mexican authorities arrest an alleged hitman for the Guerreros Unidos drug cartel, Felipe Rodriguez, in connection to the September 26, 2014 death of 43 college students. ^[2]

February

• February 27 – Mexican security forces arrest drug lord Servando Gómez Martínez in Morelia, Michoacán. ^[3]

March

• March 20 – An ambush on Mexican police in Ocotlan, Jalisco state kills ten with none of the gunmen apprehended. ^[4]

May

• May 1 – Three Mexican Army soldiers die as gunfire downs a helicopter in the state of Jalisco. Ten soldiers and two Federal Police officers are injured. ^[5]
• May 22 – At least 42 members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel and two Federal Police officers are killed in a shootout in the state of Michoacán. ^[6]

July

• July 11 – Mexican drug kingpin Joaquín Guzmán Loera escapes from a maximum security prison the Federal Social Readaptation Center No. 1. ^[7]

October

• October 17 – Fugitive drug kingpin Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán suffered injuries to his leg and face as he escaped Mexican authorities who were closing in on him in the mountains in Sinaloa in northwestern Mexico. ^[8]

Arts and literature

• Black Mass
• Legend

Deaths

• July 21 – Anthony Megale, 61, American mobster ^[9]
• August 3 – Giovanni Riggi, 90, American mobster, inspiration for The Sopranos ^[10]
• September 7 – Sigifredo Nájera Talamantes, Mexican drug cartel leader (Los Zetas)
• September 20 – Joseph Iannuzzi, 84, American mobster and FBI informant ^[11]
• December 5 – Byron Vlahakis, 83, American mobster ^[12]

See also

• Timeline of the Mexican Drug War
• List of years in organized crime

Bibliography

Notes

1. Martin, Laura. "Research Guides: Mexico's Mass Disappearances and the Drug War (Ayotzinapa: The Missing 43 Students): Drug War Timeline 1930-2015". researchguides.library.wisc.edu. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
2. "Mexico Detains New Suspect in Disappearance of 43 Students - ABC News". ABC News . 20 January 2015. Archived from the original on 20 January 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
3. Crime, InSight (9 March 2017). "Servando Gomez Martinez, alias 'La Tuta'". InSight Crime. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
4. "Gunfight kills 10 after ambush on Mexican police". Reuters . 20 March 2025.
5. "7 Killed in Violence During Anti-Cartel Operation in Mexico - ABC News". ABC News . 3 May 2015. Archived from the original on 3 May 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
6. "Mexico gunfight kills 43 as government hits gang hard". Reuters . 23 May 2015.
7. Keefe, Patrick Radden (12 July 2015). "El Chapo Escapes Again". The New Yorker. ISSN   0028-792X . Retrieved 15 May 2025.
8. Karimi, Faith (17 October 2015). "Fugitive drug lord 'El Chapo' injured while evading Mexican authorities". CNN. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
9. Nickerson, By John. "Former Gambino family boss dies in Stamford". Stamford Advocate. Archived from the original on 18 January 2025. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
10. NJ.com, Ted Sherman | NJ Advance Media for (5 August 2015). "John Riggi, Jersey mob boss who inspired 'The Sopranos,' dead at 90". nj. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
11. "EXCLUSIVE — Ex-Mobster Joe Dogs Iannuzzi Dies at 84 . . . Turned FBI Informant, Brought Down Legendary Riviera Beach Police Chief Boone Darden!". 4 July 2016. Archived from the original on 4 July 2016. Retrieved 15 May 2025.
12. "Byron Vlahakis Obituary (2015) - Lowell, MA - Lowell Sun". Legacy.com. Retrieved 15 May 2025.

References

• Kelly, Robert J.; Schatzberg, Rufus; Chin, Ko-lin (1994). Handbook of organized crime in the United States (1994 ed.). Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN   0-313-28366-4.
• Vilalta, C. (2011). "Monthly patterns, trends, and trajectories in the count of deaths related to organized crime, 2006-2010" (PDF). Conference at UAEM (in Spanish), April 26, 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on 17 August 2011.