Mexican Crime Slang & Cartel Code Words

Language is a weapon.

In the streets of Acapulco, knowing these terms can mean the difference between solving a case and becoming a statistic.

The Law & The Lawless

• La Chota: A common, often derogatory street term for the police.

• El Jefe: The boss, but in the underworld, it refers to the plaza leader who controls all criminal activity in a specific zone.

• Halcón (Falcon): Lookouts. Often teenagers on motorbikes or street vendors who monitor police movements and “tweet” locations back to the cartels.

• Sicario: A professional hitman or enforcer. In the world of Emilia Cruz, they are the ghost-like executioners of the plaza’s will.

• Autodefensa: A community based self defense group.

The Rules of the Game

• Plata o Plomo (Silver or Lead): The ultimate ultimatum. Accept a bribe (silver) or face an execution (lead). This offer no one can refuse creates a fear mindset that silences witnesses in Emilia’s fight for justice.

• El Derecho de Piso: Protection money. A “tax” businesses must pay to the local cartel just to keep their doors open.

• La Mordida (The Little Bite): A common bribe. While Emilia refuses, la mordida is the grease that keeps the city of Acapulco and the police department moving.

• Por dedazo: A phrase meaning patronage as in giving them a job or other benefit they didn’t earn. Literally, to point a finger at someone.

On the Street

• Disparacidos: those who have disappeared.

• Paquete: Literally “package,” but also a brick of illicit cargo.

• Cuerno de Chivo (Goat’s Horn): The street name for an AK-47, inspired by the curved shape of its high-capacity magazine. It is the signature weapon of cartel enforcers.

• Ventanas (Windows): Another term for lookouts or halcones. These are the “eyes” of the plaza, positioned to watch for police “intrusions” into cartel territory.

• Fusilados: Literally “rifled,” but used as slang for an execution—specifically someone destined to be shot in the head.

The Distribution Network

• La Plaza: The “turf” or specific geographic marketplace. Cartels don’t just fight over drugs; they fight for control of the plaza—the right to conduct business in a city like Acapulco.

• Tiendita (Little Shop): A small-time, local drug storefront. Unlike the massive shipments moving through the port, tienditas handle the street-level sales that fuel local addiction.

• Ya terminaron de jugar futbol (They finished playing soccer): A high-level coded message used by mules to signal that a cocaine shipment has been successfully delivered and is ready for distribution.

The Cartel’s Signature

• Narcomanta: A written or graffiti message left by a cartel at a crime scene or on a body. Sometimes as big as a sheet and hung in a prominent place, these are used to threaten rivals, claim territory, or warn potential informants.
• Encajuelado: Derived from cajuela (trunk). This refers to a victim whose body has been “trunked”—bound, gagged, and left in the trunk of a car as a grim message to the authorities.
• Encintados: Vicitims found bound and blindfolded with duct tape.
• Encobijado: a common way that sicarios dispose of bodies — wrapped in a blanket, rug, or tarpaulin and taped.
• Entambado: A body crammed into a barrel.