Cartels Have Been Reportedly Managing To Get The Same High-Caliber Ammunition Used By The U.S. Army

Mexican cartels have been managing to get a hold of high-caliber ammunition from a plant set up in a facility owned by the U.S. government and manufactures rounds used by the military, according to a new report.

The facility in question is located outside Kansas City and also supplies ammunition to the retail market, where civilians can buy them as well. Such a scenario has allowed criminal organizations to get a hold of the rounds, used by the military to destroy vehicles and light aircraft.

The New York Times and the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists shed light on agreements between the Army and private contractors, which have allowed the rounds to enter retail markets and end up in the hands of cartels.

The outlet noted that since 2012 the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has seized over 40,000 rounds of the ammunition in states bordering Mexico. Those from the facility in Kansas City, called Lake City, accounted for a third of all seizures, more than any other manufacturers.

At least 16 online retailers have sold a variation of the round, able to pierce armor. An owner of one of those businesses said he stopped selling them "about two years ago once we found out where it was going and how it was getting there."

The outlet had reported last year that cartels are immersed in an arms race and getting as sophisticated as paramilitary groups. The groups are also often using improvised explosive devices, modified drones and heavy weaponry, further increasing their lethality.

The outlet also quoted authorities who documented the use of mines, rocket-propelled grenades and armored trucks with mounted machine guns, developments that have led to the death of civilians in the country.

Many of these weapons come from the U.S., with the Mexican government historically requesting its American counterpart to do more to stem the flow and even filing a lawsuit against manufacturers, an initiative that has been struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court. Cartels are also known to produce parts with 3D printers and have also reversed-engineered some designs.

Mexican officials credit some of the improvements to the fact that former Colombian military members have been recruited to work for cartels. Earlier last year, Colombia's consul general in Mexico City confirmed that at least one active member of the Colombian armed forces is performing such tasks.

Alfredo Molano Jimeno, a former journalist appointed to the post earlier this year following controversies involving his predecessor, told Milenio "we've found that recruitment routes involve active-duty military personnel using fraudulent job offers."

He said Colombian veterans are lured with promises of monthly salaries ranging from $2,500 to $10,000, depending on their skills and level of training.

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