Extortion in Mexico Hits Highest Level in 11 Years, Coparmex Says

Mexico City — Extortion in Mexico reached its highest level in 11 years in the first half of 2026 and is now the only major crime on the rise nationwide, according to Coparmex, the Mexican employers’ confederation.

Between January and June, the country recorded 6,562 extortion victims, a 9.17% increase from the same period in 2025, the organization said, citing data from the Executive Secretariat of the National Public Security System (SESNSP). The figure is the highest for a first half-year in over a decade.

Coparmex, led by Juan José Sierra Álvarez, warned that the real scale of the problem is far larger. According to the national statistics agency INEGI, 97% of extortion cases are never reported or registered, meaning official figures capture only a small fraction of the crime.

The group also noted that 7 out of 10 extortion cases are carried out remotely — by phone, internet or social media — while 2 in 10 involve in-person contact and the rest are attempted extortions.

In response to the surge, Mexico’s telecommunications regulator has mandated that all mobile phones be linked to a personal account using the CURP identity number, a measure aimed at curbing phone-based extortion.

Regional increases

From January to June, extortion rose by 551 victims compared with the same period last year. Nineteen states reported increases, and 12 reached their highest victim totals in 11 years, Coparmex said.

Chihuahua posted the largest year-over-year jump, with cases climbing 2,325% from 4 to 97. Zacatecas saw a 551.4% increase, rising from 35 to 228 cases. Yucatán rose 400% from 1 to 5, and Tabasco climbed 184.2% from 82 to 233.

On a per-capita basis, the highest rates were in Morelos (18.8 victims per 100,000 residents), Querétaro (15.5), Zacatecas (13.2), Mexico City (12.7) and Baja California Sur (12.4), according to Coparmex.

Ten of the 20 municipalities with the highest rates are in just two states: Guanajuato (five municipalities) and Mexico City (five boroughs). The municipality with the highest rate in the country is Cuautla, Morelos, with 61.1 victims per 100,000 residents.

Thirteen states exceeded the national average of 14% in attempted extortions, including Campeche, Aguascalientes and Tabasco, reflecting differences in how the new crime-recording methodology is applied, Coparmex said.

Only crime on the rise

The organization emphasized that extortion was the only crime to increase during the first half of 2026. Others declined: homicide fell 29.6%, intentional homicide 30.1%, femicide 10.7%, kidnapping 25.3%, business robbery 7.3%, transport robbery 19.4% and vehicle theft 16.9%.

Coparmex also presented its new Extortion Index (IEC), which combines crime records from SESNSP with data on the dark figure and public insecurity perceptions from INEGI. The index shows that 14 states exceed the national average of 49.7.

Guerrero jumped from 11th to 5th place in the ranking, the largest upward move, while Sinaloa (22nd to 17th) and Michoacán (16th to 13th) also climbed. Tlaxcala (17th to 23rd), Baja California (7th to 12th) and Jalisco (23rd to 28th) fell.

The index is designed to identify where extortion poses the greatest threat and where institutional capacity must be strengthened to prevent, investigate and punish the crime, Coparmex said.

Demands

Coparmex called on authorities to take concrete action against extortion, including:

• Installing signal jammers in prisons, as required by Article 38 of the General Law, to block calls from correctional facilities.
• Completing the harmonization of state laws with the General Law for the Prevention, Investigation and Punishment of Extortion.
• Creating and adequately funding specialized anti-extortion units within state prosecutors’ offices, as mandated by Article 13 of the General Law.
• Following up on progress through Coparmex’s local business centers.
• Verifying compliance with these measures once deadlines have expired.