The Jalisco cartel, known by its acronym CJNG, is famous for its ruthless treatment of suspected traitors, informants, or traitors. For those who have worked for the cartel, knowingly or not, it seems to be an unwritten rule that the only way out of the gang is death or prison.
An activist group of relatives of the disappeared, “Por Amor a Ellxs”, said that there are about 15,000 people disappeared in Jaliscoout of a total of about 112,000 nationwide.
Call centers are a major source of employment in Mexico for youth or migrants who may have learned English in the United States, but have returned to Mexico.
Timeshare fraud came to light in April, when the US Treasury Department announced sanctions against members or associates of the Jalisco Nueva Generación cartel thatthey apparently ran a similar operation at the Puerto Vallarta beach resort, on the Pacific coast, also located in the state of Jalisco, home of the gang. grass.
Brian E. Nelson, US Treasury assistant secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement in April that “the CJNG’s deep involvement in timeshare fraud in the Puerto Vallarta area and elsewhere, which often targeting elderly US citizens and may defraud victims of their life savings, it is a major source of income that supports the group’s overall criminal enterprise.”
The scammers contacted people looking to sell timeshares at Puerto Vallarta properties.
In a 2023 alert, the FBI said the sellers were contacted by email by scammers who said they had a buyer lined up, but the seller had to pay taxes or other fees before the deal could go through. Apparently, once the money was paid, the offers evaporated.
The FBI report said that in 2022, the agency’s Internet Crime Complaint Center “received more than 600 complaints with losses of approximately $39.6 million from victims contacted by fraudsters regarding timeshare in Mexico.”
Ryan Donner, a broker with Ryan Donner & Associates, a real estate firm in Puerto Vallarta, said two people had asked his firm for help in the last two years who apparently fell victim to the scam.
“It is rare, but yes, it has happened to ussaid Donner, who was able to steer both people away from the scam before they paid any money.
Donner described the fraud as very sophisticated.
He said the scammers sent potential sellers fake contracts and official-looking documents from the Mexican tax authority that ostensibly said taxes were due on the potential sale.
“They have contracts, they have documents that look like official documents, it would be very easy to fall into the trap of paying themDonner said.
“If a company contacts someone and says they have a buyer for a property and all they need is money, that’s a big red flag that it’s some kind of scam,” Donner said. “This is not how companies usually work.”