The New York Times, March 17, 2026
by Paulina Villegas
A surge of weapons is flowing from the U.S. to Mexico. These firearms — sourced from gun shops, shows, websites and apps — are funneled across the border to fuel the country’s most violent crimes.
The 17-year-old sat in a hotel room, running a high-stakes logistics hub from his smartphone. He scrolled through listings of weapons for sale on WhatsApp and fielded requests like a call-center operator, dispatching orders in real time: Kalashnikovs, AR-15-style rifles and lots of ammunition.
The pace of business has become relentless, said the arms smuggler, the Arizona-born son of a local cartel cell leader. Though still in high school here in Phoenix, he is now handling as many as 200 firearms orders a week, roughly double what he shipped to Mexico before President Trump returned to the White House and pressed for a crackdown on the cartels.
Moving the weapons into Mexico is easy, he said, despite increased surveillance and enforcement on both sides of the border. “No one stops you unless you run a red light,” he said.
