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Who Is ‘Primito’? César Morfín Morfín: Role, Charges and Status

What officials and news reports say about César Morfín Morfín, known as “Primito”. Everything below is attributed to its source. Accusations are allegations, not findings: anyone not convicted is presumed innocent.

At a glance

Name: César Morfín Morfín
Known as: Primito
Role, as reported: He previously led the Los Metros faction of the Gulf Cartel; Treasury said he "previously led a faction of the Gulf Cartel and transformed it into a CJNG faction." [Tamaulipas Post, 2025-05-04 · news/research]
Latest status (as of 2026-09-30): He is U.S.-sanctioned and reported at large; no capture has been reported as of Sept. 30, 2026. [CreditRiskMonitor, 2026-04-17 · news/research]
Link to a criminal group: linked to the Gulf Cartel in news reports cited below. See the Gulf Cartel profile.
On this page: 12 facts from 4 sources (0 from official records). Unverified leads are not shown.

Role, as officials describe it

In September 2026 Mexican reporting again described César "N" ("El Primito") as the head (cabecilla) of the Metros criminal structure implicated in the "huachicol fiscal" scheme — the same structure Jesús Manuel "N" ("El Bebo") allegedly worked under. [MAGMA Noticias, 2026-09-28 · news/research]
Treasury identified him as involved in the transportation, importation and distribution of narcotics including fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana, and as importing fentanyl and methamphetamine precursor chemicals from China. [CreditRiskMonitor, 2026-04-17 · news/research]
A 2021 terrorism-tracking report described Los Metros as a leading Gulf Cartel faction under the command of César Morfin ("El Primito") and his younger brother Álvaro Noe Morfin — consistent with his reported Gulf Cartel leadership before the CJNG turn. [TRAC / Tracking Terrorism, 2021-09-13 · news/research]

Sanctions and designations

The U.S. Treasury/OFAC sanctioned his fuel-theft (huachicol) network for trafficking into Texas; the network's methods included bribes and threats to Pemex employees, illegal pipeline taps, refinery robberies and tanker-truck hijackings. [CreditRiskMonitor, 2026-04-17 · news/research]
Treasury said the stolen fuel was sold on the black market in Mexico, the United States and Central America, and that crude oil was smuggled into the United States commonly mislabeled as "used oil" or "waste" to evade inspections, then sold by colluding U.S. importers with proceeds sent back to the cartel in Mexico. [CreditRiskMonitor, 2026-04-17 · news/research]

Names and aliases

His full reported name is César Morfín Morfín, alias "El Primito." [Tamaulipas Post, 2025-05-04 · news/research]

Key events

Reporting identifies 2020 as the year he began diverting Gulf Cartel resources to the CJNG, sparking disputes with Los Escorpiones, another Gulf Cartel branch. [Tamaulipas Post, 2025-05-04 · news/research]
In March 2023 narco-banners hung in Mexico City blamed El Primito for a wave of violence in the Tamaulipas municipalities of Camargo, Gustavo Díaz Ordaz and Miguel Alemán, where vehicles bearing the CJNG logo had been seized. [Tamaulipas Post, 2025-05-04 · news/research]
In 2021 he and his brother Álvaro Morfín Morfín were placed on a list of the 10 most wanted criminals threatening peace and development in Texas and Tamaulipas. [Tamaulipas Post, 2025-05-04 · news/research]

Other reported details

The U.S. designations are administrative sanctions; he has not been reported charged or convicted in the cited sources, and retains the presumption of innocence. [Tamaulipas Post, 2025-05-04 · news/research]

Our coverage

Gulf Cartel profile · More “Who is” profiles

Last reviewed: September 30, 2026. If you are named here and believe something is wrong, contact us via our corrections page.