Investigation and seizures
The detainees are Oliver Ricardo Cueto Franco, 25, and Mario Uriel Cueto Franco, 30. The Mexico City Secretariat of Citizen Security (SSC) announced their arrests on November 5 in press release 2947/2026.
The investigation began after two men shot a 34-year-old man in the Tlacotal Ramos Millán neighborhood on November 2. The victim later died. The SSC said investigative and intelligence work following that attack led to the arrests.
Officers conducting reconnaissance patrols in the Juventino Rosas neighborhood spotted the suspects near Oriente 108 and Sur 19 streets, according to the SSC. A ballistic vest worn by one of the men caught their attention. Police said the pair tried to evade officers and enter a private home after noticing the patrol. Officers stopped them to investigate whether a crime had occurred and searched them under operational protocols.
Infobae México, citing the SSC release, reported that police recovered a firearm, one magazine and five rounds of ammunition. They also seized 50 bags of suspected marijuana, another 50 containing a crystalline substance with characteristics of methamphetamine, and a cellphone.
Security sources consulted by Infobae México identified both men as members of the Bebé Casasola cell, part of La Anti Unión de Tepito. Those sources linked the cell to drug distribution, homicides and extortion, including demands for business "protection" payments, in Iztacalco and elsewhere in Mexico City.
Detention records
Police investigations cited by the SSC found that both detainees had entered the Mexico City Penitentiary System in 2021 for drug offenses. Their shared surnames suggest a family relationship, but the SSC did not confirm whether they are brothers.
National Registry of Detentions records list both men as 1.70 meters tall. Oliver Ricardo is described as having a medium build, fair complexion, dark brown hair and a beard. Mario Uriel has a robust build, a light-brown complexion, short dark brown hair, a beard and a mustache.
At his arrest, Oliver Ricardo wore a tactical ballistic vest with no protective panels, a black T-shirt, light blue shorts and white sneakers with black accents. His recorded tattoos are on his right arm and forearm, right calf and behind his right ear.
Mario Uriel wore navy blue Bermuda shorts, a black T-shirt and white sneakers with black accents. His detention record lists tattoos on his chest, left hand and right calf.
Anti Unión and its rival
InSight Crime describes the cell's parent group as Fuerza Anti-Unión, a rival that had emerged by 2017 to contest La Unión Tepito's dominance in Mexico City. The organization allegedly developed close ties with senior city police officials while engaging in violent competition over small-scale drug trafficking and extortion, particularly in Álvaro Obregón, Tlalpan and Cuauhtémoc.
La Unión Tepito, meanwhile, has broken into semiautonomous cells under sustained police pressure, according to InSight Crime. The outlet reports that, since the start of the 2020s, city authorities have arrested hundreds of its members and frozen about $5.2 million held across 1,500 bank accounts linked to the group.
