The publication

Are There Cartels in Colorado? Tren de Aragua, Sinaloa Cartel, Reported Groups and Evidence (2026)

Which Mexican cartels and transnational gangs are reported in Colorado, what federal prosecutors have charged since 2024, and our latest Colorado coverage. Every item links to its source.

Cartels in the U.S.: map and all states · Mexico cartel map

At a glance

Groups reported with Colorado-specific evidence: Tren de Aragua, Sinaloa Cartel, MS-13
Federal drug-trafficking cases since Jan 2024: 0

How to read this page

Reported presence comes from DEA, Congressional Research Service, Justice Department and news reports that name Colorado or a city in it. It shows where groups have been reported, not how many people are involved.
Federal cases are Justice Department, U.S. Attorney, DEA, FBI and HSI announcements since January 2024. We name a cartel only when the release itself does; other cases are listed as drug-trafficking cases. Charged people are presumed innocent until convicted, so we don’t list defendants’ names here. Follow the link to read the release.
What it doesn’t tell you: cartel activity in your neighborhood, or crime rates. It is a record of what officials and reporters have published.

Nationwide: the DEA’s 2025 National Drug Threat Assessment says associates, facilitators and affiliates of the Sinaloa Cartel and CJNG operate in almost all 50 U.S. states. [Small Wars Journal (summary of DEA NDTA 2025), 2025-05-18] The state-by-state evidence below goes further: named cities, federal cases and official reports.

Groups reported in Colorado

Sinaloa Cartel (Congressional Research Service, Denver, as of 2024): “distribution hubs in cities that include Phoenix, Los Angeles, Denver, and Chicago” [U.S. Department of Justice]
Tren de Aragua (federal court case, as of 2026): “indictments across five U.S. Attorney offices, including the District of Colorado, District of Nebraska, District of New Mexico” [U.S. Department of Justice]
Tren de Aragua (federal court case, Denver, as of 2025): “Two alleged leaders of TdA have been indicted by a federal grand jury in connection with a series of crimes in Colorado… in connection with the armed robberies of two jewelry stores in the Denver, Colorado area in June of 2024.” [U.S. Department of Justice]
Tren de Aragua (federal court case, Aurora, as of 2025): “U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) lodged an arrest detainer against Michel Jordan Castellano Fonseca, a criminal illegal alien from Venezuela with ties to Tren de Aragua (TdA). The Aurora Police Department charged him with homicide and arrested him on Monday August 4, 2025.” [U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 2025-08-07]
Sinaloa Cartel (Treasury sanctions, as of 2026): “As a cell leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, Gonzalez Penuelas operates primarily in Sinaloa, Mexico with U.S.-based distribution cells in California, Texas, Colorado, Washington, Utah, and Nevada.” [U.S. Department of the Treasury, 2026-05-20]
MS-13 (federal court case, Denver, as of 2009): “According to the indictments, MS-13 gang members, led by Gerardo Lopez, aka Clever or G-Man, age 31, of Denver, and Jose Garcia-Sanchez, aka Catracho, age 26, of Aurora, conspired to distribute, and possessed with intent to distribute, quantities of methamphetamine, cocaine, heroin, and marijuana.” [U.S. Department of Justice, 2009-02-24]
Tren de Aragua (federal court case, as of 2026): “Charges have been filed across six U.S. Attorney offices, including the Districts of Colorado, Southern Florida, Northern Indiana, Middle Tennessee, Western Tennessee, and Eastern Washington for offenses that include firearms trafficking, drug trafficking, and possession of a firearm in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, among others.” [GlobalSecurity.org, 2026-05-11]

Our Colorado coverage

Last reviewed: September 30, 2026. Report errors via our corrections page.