Official sources confirm Colombian mercenaries now play a key role in Mexico’s cartel violence. Mexican authorities recently arrested eleven Colombian ex-soldiers in Michoacán after a roadside bomb killed eight National Guard members.

Colombia’s foreign ministry verified their military backgrounds. President Gustavo Petro stated that the Los Reyes cartel hired these mercenaries to fight the Mexican state.

This trend began after Colombia’s 2017 FARC disarmament and military budget cuts left many ex-soldiers with low pensions and few job options. Mexican cartels started recruiting them for their combat skills.

Some mercenaries arrived from Colombia, others had fought as contractors in Ukraine, Yemen, and Sudan. Colombian officials report over 300 Colombian fighters have died in Ukraine.

Cartels use these mercenaries to train gunmen, build explosives, and fight rivals. One Colombian mercenary said he was promised a security job but ended up training nearly 100 cartel members, many under 18.

Colombian Mercenaries Boost Firepower in Mexican Cartel Wars. (Photo Internet reproduction)

He reported that the cartel took his documents and threatened him. Mexican military intelligence reports show cartel leaders pay these mercenaries about $600 a week, far more than they could earn in Colombia.

The involvement of Colombian mercenaries in Mexico’s drug war shows a growing international market for military skills. Many, trained for combat but left without support, now work for criminal groups.

This trend raises security concerns for Mexico, Colombia, and other countries where these mercenaries have been linked to high-profile assassinations, such as Haiti’s president in 2021 and Ecuador’s presidential candidate in 2023.

Criminal groups exploit economic hardship and military downsizing to hire skilled fighters, making conflicts deadlier and more complex. This shift shows how organized crime now treats military experience as a valuable commodity.