According to the police report, four men wearing ski masks, aboard a white pick-up truck, carried out the attack and fled west after shooting Rodriguez.
Sunshine Rodriguez, accused of being the alleged leader of the Cartel del Mar and of totoaba trafficking in Sonora and Baja California, was shot dead on Saturday, March 8, on Calzada Independencia in Mexicali.
According to the police report, four men wearing ski masks, aboard a white pick-up truck, carried out the attack and fled west after shooting Rodriguez.
Municipal police officers went to the scene after a report to C5 and found the victim without vital signs, which was confirmed by the emergency services upon arriving at the scene.
Rodríguez, originally from San Felipe, Baja California, was declared innocent in February 2023 by a judge, after spending more than two years in prison on organized crime charges brought against him by the Attorney General’s Office (FGR).
The FGR accused him of being the alleged operator of a network for capturing and trafficking totoaba, a protected species whose fishing has contributed to the extinction of the vaquita marina. According to the accusations, Rodríguez led the so-called Cartel del Mar in Sonora and Baja California, but the judge determined that there was insufficient evidence to sustain the charges against him.
The capture of totoaba has generated a conflict in the region, as while environmental groups demand its prohibition to protect the vaquita marina, fishermen argue that the restrictions have affected their livelihood. In this context, Rodríguez was a controversial figure, seen by some as a defender of sea workers and by others as responsible for the illegal exploitation of endangered species.
So far, the Baja California Prosecutor’s Office has not issued official information on possible perpetrators or motives for the crime.
Source: Latinus
