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Akbar Novruz

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Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, the powerful head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), widely known as “El Mencho,” was killed on Sunday during a large-scale Mexican military operation in the western state of Jalisco, authorities confirmed, AzerNEWS reports.

Mexico’s Defence Department said federal forces launched a coordinated operation involving special army units and the Mexican Air Force aimed at arresting Oseguera Cervantes. Security forces tracked him to the town of Tapalpa, where CJNG gunmen opened fire in an attempt to prevent his capture.

During the firefight, four cartel members, including Oseguera Cervantes, were fatally wounded. Authorities said El Mencho and two other suspects later died while being transported by aircraft to Mexico City. Three Mexican soldiers were wounded and evacuated for treatment, while two individuals were detained.

Officials also recovered heavy weaponry, including rocket launchers capable of destroying armoured vehicles and targeting aircraft, highlighting the cartel’s military-grade capabilities.

Cartel retaliation sparks widespread unrest

News of El Mencho’s death triggered coordinated retaliatory violence by suspected CJNG members. Vehicles were set on fire, highways were blocked, and transport routes were disrupted across Jalisco, Michoacán, and Guanajuato.

In Guadalajara, Mexico’s second-largest city, residents were urged to stay indoors as schools closed and public transport was suspended. Jalisco Governor Pablo Lemus Navarro called on citizens to remain at home until security conditions stabilized.

The violence prompted Guatemala to reinforce security along its border with Mexico, while Mexican security forces were placed on high alert nationwide.

Government urges calm

President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo appealed for calm, acknowledging that the operation had triggered blockades and unrest but stressing that most of the country continued functioning normally.

“There is absolute coordination with the governments of all states; we must remain informed and calm,” she said, praising the army, National Guard, and security agencies for their response.

Who was “El Mencho”?

Oseguera Cervantes, 59, was one of the most wanted fugitives by the United States Department of State, which had offered a USD 15 million reward for information leading to his capture.

Originally from Michoacán, he founded the CJNG around 2009 after earlier imprisonment in the United States for heroin trafficking. Under his leadership, the cartel became one of Mexico’s most powerful criminal organizations, trafficking cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl, and migrants into the US.

CJNG gained notoriety for its extreme violence, including the use of drones and improvised explosive devices, the downing of a military helicopter in 2015, and an attempted assassination of former Mexico City police chief Omar García Harfuch.

International reaction

US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau praised the operation, stating on X that “the good guys are stronger than the bad guys,” and commended Mexican law enforcement efforts.

While the killing of El Mencho marks a major blow to organized crime, analysts warn that the power vacuum left behind could fuel further instability as rival factions compete for control.

Mike Vigil, former chief of international operations for the US Drug Enforcement Administration, told AP the operation sent “a strong message" that Mexico was confronting powerful cartels effectively, adding that “the majority of the information came from the Mexican armed forces."

While Mexican authorities have described the killing as a significant operational victory, analysts say the coming period will determine whether the death of “El Mencho" weakens the cartel or ushers in a new phase of violence, the Associated Press reported.

One of the cartel's special forces units engaged in conflict with the Mexican authorities.