SWJ El Centro Fellows Vanda Felbab-Brown and Eduardo Salcedo-Albarán Highlighted in Article
SWJ El Centro Fellows Vanda Felbab-Brown and Eduardo Salcedo-Albarán Highlighted in Article.
Destroying drug cartels, the mathematical way
17 October 2012 by Sara Reardon
Killing drug lords gets headlines, but complexity analysis suggests they are the wrong people to target to bring down a cartel
WHEN the Mexican navy announced on 9 October that Heriberto Lazcano, leader of the country's most violent criminal cartel, Los Zetas, had been killed it was hailed as a major victory in the war on drugs. But it's doubtful that Lazcano's death will be the end of Los Zetas – or reduce violence in Mexico. After all, there is already a new leader.