In the early hours of Wednesday, September 12, a massive leak of highly flammable liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) escaped into the quiet air of Villa Frontera, a suburb on the northern edge of Mexico’s fourth largest city, Puebla. Authorities evacuated thousands of local residents. The apparent cause of the leak was a botched pipeline tap by one of Mexico’s notorious gangs of oil thieves, or huachicoleros (pronounced “watchy-coh-leh-rohs”), who are terrorizing communities, draining national coffers, and threatening the viability of Mexico’s already debilitated energy sector. The gas leak in Villa Frontera is the latest ... (full story)