Mexico drug violence: BBC reports from Sinaloa city turned into war zone by cartel feud

Mexico's president has praised the special forces for "bringing down" the country's most wanted man, drug lord Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes.

Oseguera, better known as "El Mencho", died in custody on Sunday, shortly after being captured amid a bloody firefight in Jalisco.

But as the BBC's Quentin Sommerville found in another Mexican cartel hotspot – Culiacán in northern Sinaloa state – the vacuum left by the removal of a powerful cartel leader can trigger a surge in violence as warring factions battle for control.

Warning: This article contains graphic accounts of cartel violence which readers may find upsetting.

"The fear is everywhere and the fear is constant," said paramedic Héctor Torres, 53, from the front seat of the ambulance in Culiacán.