Mexican authorities have confirmed that Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, widely known as “El Mencho,” the leader of the Jalisco New Generation (CJNG) cartel, was killed during a security operation. The defence ministry said he died on Sunday while being transferred to Mexico City, after sustaining serious injuries in clashes between his supporters and the army.

 

Four CJNG members were also killed in Tapalpa, in Jalisco state, while three army personnel were injured. The US provided intelligence that assisted Mexican forces in the operation, the ministry said. 

 

The statement added that several armoured vehicles and weapons, including rocket launchers, were seized, while the operation involved Mexico’s special forces, the Air Force, and the National Guard.

 

The killing of El Mencho triggered immediate unrest across the region he controlled. CJNG fighters carried out attacks in at least eight states, including Jalisco, Guanajuato, Nayarit, Michoacán, Colima, Guerrero, Tamaulipas, and Zacatecas. 

 

Roadblocks made from burning cars, buses, and trucks were reported, while videos showed plumes of smoke rising over Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara. 

 

In Guadalajara, passengers at the airport were seen running for cover as armed men were filmed setting fire to vehicles and a petrol station. 

 

Governor of Jalisco, Pablo Lemus Navarro, instructed residents to stay home under a code red alert and suspended public transportation. Schools were cancelled on Monday in several states.

 

The unrest also affected air travel. US carriers United Airlines and American Airlines, as well as Air Canada, cancelled flights to Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara. A Delta Airlines flight to Guadalajara from Atlanta was diverted to Austin.

 

Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo praised the country’s security forces and urged calm. In a post on X, she wrote, “In most parts of the country, activities are proceeding normally,” and added that there was “absolute coordination with the governments of all states.”

 

El Mencho, 59, a former police officer, had led the CJNG cartel, which trafficked cocaine, methamphetamine, and fentanyl into the US. The US State Department had offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his capture. 

 

The CJNG cartel, which originated in Jalisco in 2010, has expanded across Mexico and is considered a rival to the Sinaloa cartel. It is a major supplier of fentanyl to the US, where nearly all intercepted shipments enter through the southwest border with Mexico. 

 

Since October 2024, US Customs and Border Patrol has seized more than 9,200 pounds of fentanyl, with 96% coming from the southern border.