Like a bandage torn off a gangrenous wound, the deaths of Viszla Silver’s (TSX: VZLA) engineers exposed an insidious brand of corruption in Mexico. The corruption is broad and deep. It’s a problem for miners and investors in the country.

The long and the short of working in Mexico is that you pay “mordita” one way or another. That means “bite” in Spanish, and it’s a colloquial term for the cost of operating there. The first time I ran into it was in the Baja Peninsula. 

I went down to visit a gold project there. As we drove down the sandy track between the tall cacti, I kept seeing burros: some single, some in groups. I asked the company man if they were wild or domestic. He said,

“They are wild unless one gets injured, and then it’s a beloved family pet.”

He rubbed his fingers together in the sign of money. 

The payment for a wild burro is a gentle kiss, compared to what goes on for many businesses. For example, authorities arrested the mayor of Tequila, Diego Rivera Navarro, for running an extortion ring. 

He and three other politicians worked with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. The cartel realized that sometimes it’s easier to use politicians to steal than to use guns.

Navarro and three cohorts extorted local tequila makers (including Jose Cuervo’s parent company). The men jacked up property taxes, issued massive fines, and withheld permits to get paid. 

According to news reports:

Authorities allege the officials worked in collusion with the violent Jalisco New Generation Cartel, using their official positions to allow the criminal organization to operate with impunity.

The government initiated the intervention after receiving numerous complaints from at least 10 companies, with the New York Times first reporting on a complaint filed by Jose Cuervo in late 2025. 

Here’s the problem…if they can extort a major company like Jose Cuervo, they will go after anyone. And that’s what happened to Viszla Silver. Only this time, they didn’t use politicians.

Viszla Silver, a Vancouver-based mid-tier miner, operates the Panuco silver mine in Sinaloa State, Mexico.

For those of you who aren’t familiar with the story, ten Vizsla workers were kidnapped on January 23, 2026. The story says the men were intercepted in their vehicle between the mine and company housing. 

In early February 2026, Mexican authorities found a burial site with ten bodies near El Verde. They identified five of the remains as Vizsla workers. 

The official Mexican Government story is: “mistaken identity.” They claim that a Cartel turf war accidentally targeted the men. However, my friends down there tell a different story.

My former company, Quetzal Copper, operated in Mexico, and the geological community down there is close. This tragedy shook them all. 

According to a friend close to the story, the official story stinks. The vehicles all had company logos. The men all lived in a residence that only housed mine workers. This wasn’t mistaken identity; this was extortion. 

The worst part is, the situation gets worse every day. Families now wear GPS tags so that, if they are kidnapped, they can be located. 

The sad thing is that the government doesn’t seem to be interested in cleaning up the gangs. And when politicians are actively working with the cartels, it changes the risk profile of Mexico. 

It frustrates and saddens me to write this. 

Mexico is a beautiful country of mostly friendly people. It’s a land of mountains, deserts, volcanoes, and beaches. The culture is diverse. The food is fantastic. The geology is exquisite and full of opportunities.

I loved the time I spent down there. I still have friends in places that are no longer safe for me to visit. 

So, for mining investors, beware. If you put money in companies operating in Mexico, you must account for this risk. One way or another, you pay mordita.

Godspeed to the Viszla miners.