ABSTRACT
The brutal, daylight murder of Dominguez provides an apercu into why Mexican scholar Raul Benitez insists that "Los Zetas have clearly become the biggest, most serious threat to the nation's security". Los Zetas are active throughout the Gulf Coast with centers of operations in Veracruz, in the southern states of Tabasco, Yucatan, Quintano Roo, and Chiapas, and in the Pacific Coast states of Guerrero and Oaxaca, as well as Aguascalientes and Zacatecas. The strength of the Sinaloans and their confederates has prevented Los Zetas from gaining a sustained presence in Colima, Nayarit, Sinaloa, Durango, Baja California Sur, Baja California, Sonora, and Chihuahua. Moreover, even with the dramatic successes against Los Zetas, the ex-Airborne Special Forces Groups continue to pose a serious threat to citizens on both sides of the border. La Familia continually asserts its commitment to ridding the state of malefactors.
