Mexico’s ‘El Mencho’ Killed, Sparking Fears of Cartel Retaliation
Guadalajara, Mexico – Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, the notorious leader of Mexico’s Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), was killed by the Mexican army on Sunday, marking a significant blow to the country’s drug trafficking landscape. The death of “El Mencho,” as he was widely known, has already triggered a wave of violence, raising concerns about further instability.
Oseguera Cervantes, 58, built the CJNG into one of Mexico’s most powerful and ruthless cartels, notorious for brazen attacks against security forces and its dominance in the trafficking of cocaine, methamphetamine, and fentanyl. His death comes after years of evading capture, and follows a large-scale military operation.
“He was brutal,” said Alejandro Garcia Magos, an assistant professor at the University of Toronto who studies Mexican politics, describing the killing as “good news.”
The CJNG, under Oseguera Cervantes’ leadership, distinguished itself through a willingness to engage in direct confrontations with the state, utilizing tactics like improvised explosive devices and heavily armed convoys. The cartel’s reach extends beyond Mexico, with operations and influence in the United States and beyond. Both Canada and the U.S. designated the CJNG as a foreign terrorist organization last year.
Oseguera Cervantes faced multiple indictments in the United States, and the U.S. State Department had offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his arrest.
His path to becoming a kingpin began in rural Michoacán, Mexico, in 1966. He reportedly immigrated illegally to the U.S. in the 1980s, settling in the San Francisco Bay Area where he was repeatedly arrested on drug and firearms charges before being deported. He repeatedly re-entered the U.S. despite deportation orders, allegedly continuing to smuggle drugs under various aliases.
After returning to Mexico, Oseguera Cervantes joined the Milenio Cartel, eventually rising through the ranks and seizing control after a period of internal conflict following the arrest of key leaders in 2009 and 2010. He rebranded the organization as the CJNG, expanding its territory and influence.
Experts suggest the cartel’s success was aided by corruption within the government, with some alleging political protection from as many as nine governors. “That’s huge, when you have the political protection…that allows you to engage in local monopolies,” explained Edgardo Buscaglia, a senior scholar in law and economics at Columbia University.
The CJNG has diversified its revenue streams beyond drug trafficking, reportedly engaging in schemes like timeshare fraud in tourist destinations like Puerto Vallarta, as alleged by the U.S. government last September.
The impact of Oseguera Cervantes’ death remains to be seen. Deborah Bonello, managing editor of InSight Crime, notes that the CJNG has a widespread presence throughout Mexico. “There isn’t a single state in Mexico that doesn’t have the presence of either the Jalisco cartel or the Sinaloa Cartel in some shape or form,” she said.
The immediate aftermath of the killing has been marked by violence, with reports of clashes between cartel members and security forces. Authorities are bracing for a potential escalation as rival factions attempt to exploit the power vacuum left by “El Mencho’s” demise.
