A Beginner’s Guide to Cross-border Criminal Activities in Tijuana, Mexico

Did you know experts believe Tijuana’s crime index is currently 71.65 on a 100-point scale? In other words, Tijuana has one of the highest crime rates in Mexico!

While major crimes like homicide typically take place in Tijuana’s non-tourist areas, there are also plenty of criminal activities taking place at the US-Mexico border. Ready to find out what they are?

Here’s a beginner’s guide to three of the most common cross-border criminal activities in Tijuana, Mexico.

Drug Crimes

What Does it Entail?

Drug crimes are all crimes involving the use and/or transportation of drugs. One of the most prevalent cross-border drug crimes in Tijuana, Mexico is the illegal sale, transportation, and/or importation of drugs to resell them for a profit. This is known as drug trafficking.

In addition to drug trafficking, it’s also common for customs officials on both sides of the border to hand out drug possession charges. These are given to individuals found crossing the border with a small volume of drugs intended for personal use. It’s also common for border authorities to charge people with drug cultivation, driving under the influence of drugs, and possessing and/or selling prescription drugs. This includes opioids that are renowned for abuse such as oxycodone and fentanyl.

Who Does It?

Cross-border drug crimes are often committed by criminal organizations like Mexico’s notorious cartels. Organizations like the Sinaloa Cartel hire drug mules to transport drugs across the US-Mexico border. However, numerous unsuspecting tourists get caught facing drug-related charges in Mexico. These are people who don’t know it’s illegal to bring drugs across the border and resort to seeking legal help from a drug possession crimes attorney.

Money Laundering

What Does it Entail?

Money laundering refers to the process of ‘cleaning’ money obtained from illegal means. Criminals often engage in money laundering because it’s impossible to spend proceeds from crime without alerting local law enforcement.

Money laundering involves diluting the money’s paper trail by depositing and withdrawing it across multiple channels. For instance, many criminals create multiple “shell companies” that only exist on paper but don’t have any employees or premises. Bank accounts are made in each shell company’s name, and money is transferred between these accounts to make it difficult for authorities to trace.

Shell companies are often created in more than one country, which is why money laundering is a prominent cross-border criminal activity in Tijuana, Mexico!

Who Does It?

Large-scale money laundering is only effective if a vast network of criminals such as a cartel works together. However, there are also instances of individuals engaging in small-scale money laundering. They bring in the profits of crimes like drugs or firearms sales into Tijuana and deposit it in places like casinos before withdrawing it in ‘clean’ money. The Mexican government counteracts this by levying a 20% to 40% tax on all undeclared cash exceeding $100,000.

Gun Crimes

What Does it Entail?

Gun crimes include everything from storing a firearm neglectfully to transporting a firearm into Mexico irrespective of whether you intended to. In other words, if you inadvertently drive through San Ysidro with a firearm, you’ll face criminal prosecution in Mexico even if you’re licensed to carry it in the United States!

Unfortunately, thousands of residents in Tijuana die each year due to homicides caused by guns smuggled across the border from the United States. Therefore, it’s not surprising that Mexico has some of the world’s stringent laws on carrying and transporting weapons.

Who Does It?

Gun crimes are primarily committed by gang members retaliating against one another over cross-border criminal activities like drug trafficking. They’re often extremely violent and leave both criminals and innocent bystanders dead in their wake. Sadly, numerous cartels continue to grow in Mexico despite the authority’s best efforts—making gun crimes one of the most prevalent cross-border criminal activities in Tijuana, Mexico.If you’re charged with committing a cross-border crime, it’s crucial to hire an experienced cross-border criminal lawyer like Meneses Legal to maximize your chances of attaining a favorable outcome. Our team specializes in defending clients facing charges related to all three types of crimes discussed above. We’ve built a solid reputation for being one of the best criminal defense lawyers in Mexico and possess 40 years of combined experience in the legal field.

Whether you’re looking for a drug crimes attorney or a gun crimes attorney in Tijuana, we’re just one call away! Dial 664-500-6896 if you’re in Tijuana or 619-777-8627 if you’re in the United States to speak to our team of bilingual criminal defense attorneys today.