San Marcos, Guatemala

General García León brigade on the Totonicapan fields. Army forces loyal to president Reina Barrios[3]

In September 1897, after the failure of both the interoceanic railroad and the Central American Expo and the deep economic crisis that Guatemala was facing after the plummeting of both coffee and silver international prices, the people of Quetzaltenango raised in arms against the decision of president José María Reina Barrios to extend his presidential term until 1902.[lower-alpha 1] A group of rebels, among them a former Secretary of Reina Barrios's cabinet -Próspero Morales-, began to combat on 7 September 1897 attacking San Marcos; after several battles and some gains in Ocos, Coatepeque and Colomba the rebels were definitely defeated on 4 October 1897. As a result, on 23 October 1897, San Pedro Sacatepéquez became the capital of San Marcos Department.[3]

In 1903 the eruption of the Santa María volcano in the neighboring department of Quetzaltenango was responsible for the destruction of the twin towns of San Marcos and San Pedro Sacatepéquez.[5] The towns were rebuilt and on 16 December 1935, during the presidency of general Jorge Ubico, it was annexed to San Pedro Sacatepéquez forming the municipality of La Unión San Marcos. However, this system did not work and La Unión San Marcos was broken apart on 20 July 1945, but San Pedro Sacatepéquez lost the capital of San Marcos Department to the municipality of San Marcos.[6]

Towards the end of the 20th century San Marcos became a hot spot for drug trafficking in Central America, and one of the top lords was Juan Chamalé Ortiz, who was heavily involved in cocaine trafficking, and was accused by US authorities of helping to move over 40 tons of cocaine through Central America en route to the United States. Ortiz worked with local fishermen to smuggle cocaine in small fishing boats and may have also commissioned semi-submersibles to transport the drug. Ortiz also controlled a major opium poppy producing area, the San Marcos Department, where he was a popular local figure. He owned at least ten estates in his area of operations, centered in San Marcos city, and provided numerous jobs, in addition to cultivating local support by throwing parties and sponsoring beauty contests.[7]

San Marcos is one of the most important regions in Guatemala given its proximity to the highlands, Mexico and to the Pacific Ocean coast, where most of the drugs coming from South America land. Ortiz exerted influence over local politicians and police in the region, and relied on a powerful local support network to conduct his business. He is thought to have worked out a deal that made him the Sinaloa Cartel's top transporter, helping the Mexican group move drugs that arrived via Pacific routes. Ortiz Chamalé was captured in 2011 in Quetzaltenango and extradited to the United States in 2014 where he was sentenced to 262 months in jail; when Ortiz was arrested in 2011, locals protested to demand his release.[7]