The term “death of a sicario” most commonly refers to:

• The deaths of various hitmen (sicarios) and cartel members in the 2015 film Sicario and its 2018 sequel, Sicario: Day of the Soldado.
• The death of a real-life cartel assassin, as covered in news reports and documentaries. 

In the Sicario Films 

The movies depict numerous deaths of sicarios and cartel figures as part of the escalating war on drugs along the U.S.-Mexico border. 

• Fausto Alarcón, a major Sonora Cartel drug lord, is killed by Alejandro Gillick (Benicio del Toro) in a brutal dinner scene as revenge for the murder of Alejandro’s family.
• Manuel Díaz, a Sonora Cartel lieutenant, is stabbed in the neck and left to bleed out by Alejandro.
• Officer Silvio, a corrupt police officer and drug mule, is shot in the head by Alejandro.
• Many other unnamed cartel soldiers and corrupt police officers are killed in shootouts and airstrikes throughout the films by U.S. forces, Delta Force operators, and Alejandro Gillick. 

In Real Life

Several news stories, documentaries, and blog posts focus on the lives and deaths of real-world cartel hitmen.

• Jhon Jairo Velásquez (“Popeye”), a notorious sicario for Pablo Escobar’s Medellín Cartel, died in prison on February 6, 2020, from terminal esophageal cancer.
• José Manuel Martinez (“El Mano Negra”), a sicario for the Sinaloa Cartel, was convicted of multiple murders and received life sentences, sparing him from the death penalty in a Florida trial in 2019.
• Media outlets, such as the International Crisis Group, have published accounts of the lives and deaths of various unnamed sicarios involved in the ongoing violence in Mexico.
• News reports also cover instances where high-ranking cartel leaders and their lead assassins with U.S. bounties on their heads are killed in clashes in Mexico. 

For more information on the real-life context, a report by ProPublica discusses the reality of the drug war that inspired the film Sicario. 

What impact did Popeye’s confessions have?

What tactics did U.S. and Mexican forces use against sicarios in the film?

What’s the difference between a cartel and a sicario?

The “death of a sicario” can refer to the 

fictional deaths in the movie Sicario, where characters are killed by other sicarios or cartel members, often through methods like shooting or stabbing. In real life, “sicario” (hitman) is a role associated with violent death, and their own demise often results from their dangerous lifestyle, such as being killed by rivals or law enforcement. 

In the movie Sicario

• Alejandro Gillick’s revenge: A prominent storyline involves the character Alejandro Gillick, a former prosecutor, who becomes a sicario himself to exact revenge on Fausto Alarcón, the cartel boss who murdered his family.
• Vicarious deaths: Alejandro is shown executing a number of cartel members, including sicarios and guards, as part of his mission.
• Methods of death: These fictional deaths are portrayed as brutal and often involve firearms, with one of the main characters, Manuel Díaz, being stabbed to death in the neck. 

Real-world context

• Life and death of a sicario: The term “sicario” comes from the zealots of Jerusalem and means “hitman” in Mexico.
• Dangerous lifestyle: A sicario’s life is inherently dangerous, and their death is often a direct result of their work, whether it’s being killed by a rival cartel, a law enforcement agency, or a power struggle within their own organization.
• Example: One article describes the death of a Mexican hitman, “Grillo,” who was shot in the face twice by another sicario, a method he himself had used on others.