Mexican cartel leader ‘El Mencho’ killed in military operation
Mexican drug lord Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, commonly known as “El Mencho,” was killed in a military operation, officials announced on Sunday, the latest victory in Mexico’s war on drug cartels amid U.S. intervention threats.
Mexico’s defense ministry said a shootout in Tapalpa, Jalisco, left Oseguera seriously injured, and he died during an air transfer to Mexico City. Six other cartel members were killed and two were arrested in the military operation.
“Various weapons and armored vehicles were seized, including rocket launchers capable of shooting down aircraft and destroying armored vehicles,” Mexican officials said, adding that the authorities in the United States provided “complementary information.”
A former police officer, Oseguera was the shadowy leader of the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel, an outfit named for the western state that is home to one of Mexico’s biggest cities, Guadalajara. Over a relatively short period of time, the cartel transformed into an international criminal enterprise rivaling former allies in the Sinaloa Cartel, the gang of captured kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, now in a U.S. prison.
Oseguera’s death notches a major victory for Mexico’s war on drug cartels that are responsible for smuggling billions of dollars in cocaine and fentanyl into the U.S. The operation set off a wave of violence, with torched cars and gunmen blocking highways in more than half a dozen states.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said on social media that “there is absolute coordination with the governments of all states,” adding that “we work every day for peace, security, justice, and the well-being of Mexico.”
Jalisco Gov. Pablo Lemus Navarro urged residents to stay home until the situation was brought under control, and the U.S. embassy advised its citizens to shelter in place. Videos on social media showed cars ablaze, sending dark smoke into the sky, on roads in Jalisco.
The killing sparked revenge attacks within hours, as gunmen suspected to be his supporters set cars and businesses ablaze.
A member of Oseguera’s Jalisco New Generation Cartel told Reuters that the blazes and sporadic gunfire were carried out in revenge for the government’s killing of Oseguera, and warned of further bloodshed as groups move to take control of his cartel.
U.S. provided information for ‘El Mencho’ operation
The military operation against Oseguera follows a pressure campaign from the Trump administration on Sheinbaum’s government to ramp up its crackdown on drug trafficking, which included U.S. threats to intervene directly in Mexico.
The ministry said in the release that the United States provided information for the operation.
“In addition to central military intelligence efforts, complementary information was provided by U.S. authorities within the framework of bilateral coordination and cooperation with the United States,” the release read.
Mexican media outlets reported gunmen suspected to be his supporters blocking highways in more than half a dozen states across the country, particularly in the north and west. Mexico’s security cabinet said in a post on X that, as of noon Pacific, there were 21 active highway blockades in Jalisco and 20 branches of Banco del Bienestar in the state that suffered damage.
Flights to Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara airports were diverted or canceled by major airlines, including Delta Air Lines, American Airlines, and Alaska Airlines. The Liga MX Femenil match between Chivas and Club América scheduled for Sunday, and a men’s Liga MX match were postponed due to the violence.
Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau called the killing a “great development for Mexico, the US, Latin America, and the world” in a post on X. “I’m watching the scenes of violence from Mexico with great sadness and concern.”
‘Biggest prize for many, many years’
Vanda Felbab-Brown, an expert on international organized crime, compared Oseguera to other key drug figures taken down in recent years, Guzman and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, both of the rival Sinaloa cartel.
“Apart from the heads of the Sinaloa cartel, ‘El Mencho’ has been the biggest prize for many, many years,” Felbab-Brown told Reuters, adding that she expects a “tremendous amount of violence is going to happen.”
Unlike some cartel leaders who inherited leadership positions from family dynasties, Oseguera’s parents were farm workers who carved out a living in Aguililla, a city of fewer than 20,000 people in Michoacán – known as the world’s avocado capital.
He dropped out of school after the sixth grade to pick avocados, the Courier Journal, part of the USA Today Network, reported in 2019. The future “El Mencho” attempted to build a drug-trafficking business in the Bay Area, served more than four years in federal prison, and was deported after he sold heroin for $9,500 to two undercover officers at the Imperial Bar in San Francisco in 1992.
Oseguera made his way to Tijuana, the prominent border town for American tourists and feuding Mexican cartels. There, he grew his drug-smuggling business in San Diego and quickly made a name for himself at the main entry point into the U.S. that acts as a popular drug plaza for cartels wanting to export their product across the border.
This article originally appeared on USA Today
USA Today Network via Reuters Connect