“This is a great development for Mexico, the US, Latin America, and the world.” — US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau on El Mencho’s death
On February 22, 2026, Mexican security forces killed Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, better known as “El Mencho” — the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) and the world’s most wanted drug trafficker. The operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco marked the end of a man who had built one of the most powerful and violent criminal organisations in history, with a $15 million US bounty on his head.
His death triggered immediate chaos across Mexico: burning vehicles blocked highways in 12+ states, airports shut down, and the CJNG sent a violent message that the cartel remains operational. For India and the world, this event reshapes the global drug trade, US-Mexico relations, and raises critical questions about the effectiveness of targeting criminal kingpins.
🎯 The Operation: How Mexico Took Down El Mencho
The Mexican Army, supported by the National Guard, Mexican Air Force, and intelligence personnel from the Attorney General’s Office, conducted a targeted operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco state — a known CJNG stronghold. Intelligence had confirmed El Mencho’s presence in the area.
When Mexican forces moved in, they met armed resistance from CJNG members. In the ensuing firefight, El Mencho was critically wounded. He was evacuated by helicopter for emergency medical treatment but died en route to a facility in Mexico City.
Operation Outcome: 7 CJNG fatalities (including El Mencho), 2 cartel members arrested, armoured vehicles, rocket launchers, and heavy tactical equipment seized. Three Mexican soldiers were wounded.
The White House confirmed that the United States provided intelligence support to Mexico for the mission. This cooperation is significant given Mexico’s historically strong stance on sovereignty and reluctance to accept direct US involvement in domestic security operations.
👤 Who Was El Mencho? From Police Officer to Drug Lord
Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, 59, was born in Aguililla, Michoacán. His transformation from a police officer and minor trafficker to the head of Mexico’s most powerful cartel represents one of the most dramatic rises in organised crime history.
He previously worked alongside Sinaloa Cartel figures, most notably Ignacio “Nacho Coronel” Villarreal. After Villarreal’s death in 2010, El Mencho partnered with Erik Valencia Salazar (“El 85”) and formally established the Jalisco New Generation Cartel around 2009.
Think of El Mencho as someone who started as a minor player in a large corporation (Sinaloa Cartel), then used the chaos from a leadership vacuum to build his own rival company (CJNG) — one that eventually matched the original in power and exceeded it in violence.
⚡ Rise of the CJNG: What Made Them Different
Initially a relatively small group, the CJNG grew with astonishing speed by combining extreme violence with sophisticated logistics. By the mid-2010s, they had become one of the two dominant criminal organisations in Mexico — alongside the Sinaloa Cartel — with the DEA assessing them as roughly equal in power.
| Innovation | Description | Impact |
|---|---|---|
| Weaponised Drones | Pioneered use of drones to carry explosives | Asymmetric warfare capability |
| Anti-Tank Mines | Deployed against military vehicles | Deterred conventional military response |
| Helicopter Assaults | Frontal attacks on military aircraft | Demonstrated military-level capability |
| US Distribution Network | Presence in all 50 US states | Primary fentanyl supplier to America |
| Audacious Operations | 2020 assassination attempt on Mexico City police chief | Signalled willingness to attack state directly |
Don’t confuse: CJNG (Jalisco New Generation Cartel) with the Sinaloa Cartel. While both are Mexico’s dominant cartels, CJNG was founded around 2009 and is known for extreme violence and military-style tactics. Sinaloa (El Chapo’s cartel) is older and historically larger but is currently fractured by internal civil war.
🔥 Chaos Across Mexico: The Immediate Aftermath
Within hours of the news breaking, the CJNG unleashed coordinated retaliatory violence across Mexico — a standard tactic to block military operations and signal that the organisation remains powerful despite leadership loss.
- 12+ Mexican states saw burning vehicles blocking highways (Jalisco, Colima, Michoacán, Nayarit, Guanajuato, Tamaulipas)
- Guadalajara — Jalisco’s capital and a FIFA World Cup 2026 host city — turned into a ghost town overnight
- Puerto Vallarta International Airport: All international operations cancelled; airlines including Southwest, Alaska, United, Delta, Air Canada halted services
- Schools cancelled across multiple states on February 23
- Travel warnings issued by US, Canada, and other governments for Jalisco, Michoacán, Guerrero, Tamaulipas, and Nuevo León
The CJNG’s ability to instantly paralyse major cities and airports demonstrates the “state within a state” power of Mexican cartels. This raises a crucial question: Does killing a cartel leader strengthen or weaken state authority?
⚖️ The Succession Problem: What Comes Next?
El Mencho has no obvious internal successor within the CJNG. His brother is in a US prison. His son — “El Menchito” — is also imprisoned. His daughter is in custody as well. There is no designated number two who commands universal loyalty across the cartel’s regional factions.
Security analysts draw a direct parallel to the fallout from El Chapo’s arrest: when the Sinaloa Cartel lost its figurehead, it eventually descended into a bloody civil war between factions — a conflict that continues today.
Key Pattern: Kingpin removal → Power vacuum → Faction competition → Increased violence. This happened after El Chapo (Sinaloa) and Arturo Beltrán Leyva’s death (2009). The same dynamic may now unfold in CJNG.
🌍 Why the India-Mexico-US Connection Matters
For Indian exam aspirants, the El Mencho story connects to several broader geopolitical threads:
The Fentanyl Supply Chain: China → precursor chemicals → Mexican cartels (CJNG/Sinaloa) → synthesis in Mexico → distribution across all 50 US states. This chain is central to understanding US-Mexico-China geopolitics. India has been separately flagged by the DEA as a significant source of pharmaceutical precursors.
Mexico-US-India Trade Angle: Mexico and Canada are among the countries most affected by Trump’s tariff actions. The El Mencho operation — conducted with US intelligence support — comes at a moment when the Sheinbaum government is under significant pressure from Washington.
Foreign Terrorist Organisation Designation: The CJNG was designated an FTO by the US in February 2025. This has direct implications for anyone financially connected to the cartel globally, including through money laundering channels.
| Connection | Relevance for India |
|---|---|
| Fentanyl Crisis | India flagged as source of pharmaceutical precursors by DEA |
| Trade Relations | Trump’s tariff policies affect India’s trade environment |
| FTO Designation | Global financial compliance implications for Indian banks |
| Organised Crime | Lessons for India’s approach to tackling criminal networks |
📜 The Kingpin Strategy Debate
Security policy experts have long debated whether killing or arresting cartel leaders reduces violence or simply triggers succession crises. Mexico under both AMLO and Sheinbaum has officially distanced itself from the strategy — yet the El Mencho operation was precisely that: a targeted decapitation strike.
Historical Evidence:
- After El Chapo’s capture (2016-2019): The Sinaloa Cartel fractured. Civil war between factions loyal to “El Mayo” Zambada and El Chapo’s sons has killed thousands
- After Arturo Beltrán Leyva’s death (2009): The organisation fragmented into competing groups, increasing violence in Guerrero, Morelos, and Sinaloa
The kingpin strategy presents a classic policy dilemma: short-term “wins” (capturing/killing leaders) may produce long-term instability (succession violence). This framework applies beyond drug cartels — to terrorism, insurgency, and organised crime globally.
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El Mencho was killed on February 22, 2026 during a military operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco, Mexico.
The Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) was founded around 2009 and grew rapidly through extreme violence and sophisticated logistics.
The CJNG has presence in all 50 US states, making it the primary distributor of fentanyl to American consumers.
The CJNG was designated a Foreign Terrorist Organisation (FTO) by the Trump administration in February 2025.
Claudia Sheinbaum is the current President of Mexico who applauded the operation while historically being critical of the kingpin strategy.
