Drug cartels in Mexico, wary of being labeled narcoterrorists, have avoided using vehicle bombs as a tactic in their competition with rivals, a wariness that will most likely extend into the future.
Mexico's cartels have long eschewed using vehicle bombs for fear of the consequences of doing so. And yet many media outlets said they did on Nov. 7, 2019, when a Mexican explosive ordnance disposal unit deactivated a small bomb left on the front seat of a vehicle parked on a street in the city of Apaseo el Alto, in Mexico's Guanajuato state. The bomb was a small, low-explosive charge wrapped in tape and shopping bags. It was round and resembled a commercial firework mortar bomb that, judging from a sports drink bottle left in the vehicle, was approximately 20 centimeters (about 8 inches) in diameter. What appears to be a remote receiver was taped to the top of the ball; a wire led from the receiver into the ball that presumably led to a squib or other electrical detonator. This small, simple device created quite a ripple effect.
