Chivís Martínez for Borderland Beat
![]()
Carlos Rosales Mendoza, alias "El Tísico", was arrested last Tuesday in Morelia, Michoacán. Rosales is one of the founders of LFM Cartel, who spent 10 years in the maximum prison of Puente Grande,Jalisco, he was released on May 22, 2014.
Rosales Mendoza born February 12th 1963, is a former leader and founder of La Familia Michoacana Cartel (LFM). He was a close friend and associate of Osiel Cárdenas Guillén, the former premier leader of The Gulf Cartel.
Rosales was arrested by (GAFE) special forces squadron on 24 October 2004, he was convicted of weapons and organized crime charges.
Rosales, with strong religious proclivities, sharing the same beliefs as Chayo, had been appointed by his best friend Chayo as a religious disciple. It was Chayo who convinced Rosales to plan and participate in an outlandish attempt to free Osiel Cardenas from ‘La Palma’ prison.
At the time of his arrest, he, along with ‘Chayo’ were working on a plan to break Cárdenas out of prison, using "blood and fire", but those plans were aborted when Rosales was arrested in late 2004 in Morelia. Eventually, Chayo went on to break from the CDG/Zetas alliance.
Authorities did not explain the delay of announcing the recent arrest, nor an explanation of why he was arrested, or if there was an arrest order filed which prompted the arrest.
He was arrested while at a cafe in Plaza Carmelinas, in the state capital.