I live in Houston, where most of our crime is derived from the drugs the cartels supply. In fact, my little brother was murdered by a gang that sold drugs for cartels while he was playing video games at a friends house. Don't know why they chose to do a home invasion on that particular house, but they did. So yes, cartel drugs and the violence that they generate is a daily reality for many border state residents.
I still believe this could be a cartel-related kidnapping for ransom, but I also believe this could be a burglary gone wrong. Or it could be any other number of things. The only thing I'm truly sure about is that this crime is BIZARRE and that we should all feel free to post our theories as long as they don't violate TOS.