Mexican military kills “El Mencho,” triggering violence across 20 states

The death of CJNG boss Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” was announced after Mexican forces carried out an operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco, that Mexico’s Defense Ministry said involved special Army units supported by aircraft from the Air Force. A senior federal official told The Associated Press that Oseguera Cervantes, 59, was killed following a confrontation with the military in western Mexico, in an outcome the official said decapitated the country’s most powerful cartel and delivered what the government described as one of its strongest narcotics-enforcement results. The Mexican Defense Ministry said Oseguera Cervantes was detained after being gravely wounded at the scene and later died during an aerial transfer to Mexico City.

Mexico’s government said the operation depended on military intelligence and was carried out under coordination and cooperation with U.S. authorities, which it said provided “information complementaria” for the mission. The White House press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, confirmed U.S. participation, saying on X that the United States “brindó apoyo de inteligencia” to Mexico for the operation in which Oseguera Cervantes died. Leavitt identified “El Mencho” as a priority target for both governments, saying he was among the major fentanyl traffickers to the United States, and she praised Mexican military cooperation as contributing to a successful operation.

In the hours after the operation, authorities reported a wave of violence that spread beyond Jalisco. The Associated Press reported that the incident sparked arson and looting affecting dozens of stores, bank branches and vehicles, as well as road blockades across 20 of the country’s 32 states. The report said many blockades were lifted within hours, while federal and state authorities reinforced security and moved additional contingents of the Army and the Guardia Nacional to Jalisco.

Authorities in at least three states—Jalisco, Michoacán and Guanajuato—reported casualties and arrests tied to the disruption. The Associated Press said state officials reported at least 14 deaths, including seven members of the Guardia Nacional, and said 64 people were detained. In Jalisco, Gov. Pablo Lemus ordered residents not to leave their homes and directed suspension of public transportation, then later reported partial reopening after some roadblocks were lifted. Lemus said a security table with authorities across all levels of government was activated and that a “código rojo” was implemented to inhibit attacks against the public.

The Associated Press also described incidents in Guadalajara and surrounding areas, including Puerto Vallarta and Chapala. It reported that attacks in Jalisco were concentrated in Guadalajara—set to host matches of the 2026 World Cup—along with Chapala and Puerto Vallarta, where multiple businesses and vehicles were burned, and a fight involving inmates was reported at a local prison. The report said some videos circulating on social media showed smoke rising over Puerto Vallarta and people running at the Guadalajara airport out of fear of additional violence, with Air Canada later announcing flight suspensions to the tourist city and advising customers not to go to the airport. Other international and local airlines also took steps, and authorities told tourists to avoid leaving hotels in Puerto Vallarta.

The AP reporting included firsthand accounts from people at the airport and from officials describing the dead and injured. Jacinta Murcia, a 64-year-old vendor, said she was waiting at the Guadalajara airport while news about “El Mencho” circulated, alternating between reading on social media and sending messages to her children who were tracking her location as she tried to reach home. A state official speaking to the AP on condition of anonymity said during the violence in the Jalisco region, a Guardia Nacional member was killed in Tapalpa and six additional members of the force died in the municipality of Zapopan. The state official also said a custodian was killed at Puerto Vallarta’s prison and a state prosecutor was killed in Guadalajara, while the government of Jalisco reported 13 arrests during violent incidents and said 14 more people were detained after participating in alleged looting.

In Michoacán, neighboring Jalisco, authorities said forces remained deployed to restore order and reopen blocked roads. Gov. Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla said on X that state and federal forces were working to restore public safety, and the state fiscal authority, Carlos Torres, told the AP that five separate clashes in Michoacán resulted in four alleged criminals dead. The AP said two people were detained in Michoacán and three Guardia Nacional members were injured there. In Guerrero, it said a Guardia Nacional member and a civilian were injured in an attack on the façade of the state prosecutor’s offices in the tourist port of Acapulco.

The violence and disruption also led to precautionary measures in multiple states. The Associated Press reported that Jalisco, Michoacán, Guanajuato, Baja California, Querétaro, Colima and Nayarit, among others, announced the suspension of school activities for Monday as officials moved to respond to what they said was a worsening security situation. The AP also reported that authorities in Guanajuato said police and federal forces arrested 35 people in 74 violent events during that day, and that officials linked the incidents to the operation in Jalisco.

The AP report provided background on how CJNG leadership changed over time. It said Oseguera Cervantes came from Aguililla, Michoacán, and that he moved to the United States as a youth before returning and joining forces led by drug trafficker Ignacio Coronel Villarreal, alias “Nacho Coronel.” After Coronel’s death, the AP said Oseguera Cervantes and Erik Valencia Salazar, alias “El 85,” created the CJNG around 2009, initially operating under the Cártel de Sinaloa before later splitting and competing for territory. The AP said the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration has recognized CJNG presence across 21 of Mexico’s 32 states, and that the agency estimated Sinaloa operates in 19 states. The AP also said some analysts consider the CJNG presence extends to 25 states, with Jalisco described as its stronghold, and that the cartel’s operations have reached about a hundred countries including the United States.