Mexican authorities tracked down and killed Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, alias “El Mencho”, one of the world’s most wanted drug traffickers, by following a romantic partner to his safe house near the mountain town of Tapalpa, Mexico’s defence secretary has revealed. The 59-year-old leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) was fatally injured during a military raid on Sunday, which prompted a wave of retaliatory violence across western Mexico.
Defence Secretary Ricardo Trevilla Trejo said El Mencho’s bodyguards opened fire on the military as it encircled the cabin in a wooded area about 80 miles south-west of Guadalajara. The gunfire forced a helicopter into an emergency landing, echoing a failed 2015 capture attempt when his gunmen brought down a helicopter with a rocket-propelled grenade. El Mencho fled into a nearby forest, where he was wounded and captured, dying while being transferred for medical treatment in Mexico City.
Seven of his men were killed in the firefight, while two soldiers were wounded. Rifles and grenade launchers were seized. The operation, supported by US intelligence, immediately set off a wave of violence, with cartel gunmen blocking almost 100 major roads, torching vehicles, and attacking security forces, especially in Jalisco and Michoacán states. Security Minister Omar García Harfuch reported 25 national guard members killed and 14 wounded, along with 34 gunmen and one bystander. Another 70 people were arrested.
Trevilla confirmed that Hugo César Macías Ureña, alias “El Tuli”, a close ally who coordinated the violence after El Mencho’s death and offered a bounty for dead soldiers, was also killed. By Monday, authorities cleared all blockades, and President Claudia Sheinbaum said Mexico was at peace. However, sporadic vehicle burnings were reported in Michoacán, schools remained closed in many states, and some airlines had not resumed normal service to Guadalajara and Puerto Vallarta.
Security analyst Stephen Woodman in Guadalajara said the violence “kicked off pretty immediately” as news broke, with cartels having plans to cause maximum disruption. Misinformation, including AI-generated photos and footage, swirled on social media. Jalisco Governor Pablo Lemus Navarro urged citizens to stay home and suspended public transport. Tanya Dittmar, a trainee doctor, hid in a closet during an hour-long gun battle near her home, describing the terror of hearing gunshots for the first time.
