Mexico City
—
The leader of the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel, Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, was killed on Sunday following an operation led by Mexico’s military, the authorities introduced.
Oseguera, a former police officer, led the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, or CJNG, because it turned one of the “most powerful and ruthless criminal organizations” inside Mexico, in accordance with the US Drug Enforcement Agency.
Security forces from a number of federal branches of Mexico’s military carried out the operation in the city of Tapalpa in the western state of Jalisco.
CJNG members traded fireplace with the authorities forces, leading to 4 gang members being killed at the scene, Mexico’s Secretariat of National Defense stated.
Osegeura and two others had been critically injured and died as they had been being transported by way of plane to Mexico City, in accordance with the secretariat.
Three Mexican military personnel had been additionally injured in the operation and transferred to a hospital in Mexico City for therapy.
The military operation triggered a collection of violent occasions throughout the state of Jalisco, which is scheduled to host 4 matches of the 2026 World Cup in June, earlier than spreading to different states akin to Michoacán and Guanajuato.
Suspected members of organized crime teams set buses on fireplace, blocked roads in the space, and clashed with authorities, Jalisco Governor Pablo Lemus Navarro reported.
During the operation, Lemus urged residents to stay of their houses and stated that public transportation providers in Jalisco can be suspended “until the situation is under control.”
The governor acknowledged that the violence has unfold to at the very least 5 states and urged the public to keep away from touring on highways.
The US State Department issued a journey advisory urging US residents to shelter in place in the Mexican states of Jalisco, Tamaulipas, and Michoacán resulting from “ongoing safety operations and associated street blockages and prison exercise.
Oseguera was needed by US authorities, who supplied a bounty of as much as $15 million for info resulting in his arrest.
The US Justice Department charged El Mencho in 2022 with main the effort to fabricate and distribute fentanyl for importation into the US.
A Justice Department indictment of Oseguera stated his group is lively in the Mexican states of Jalisco, Colima, and Veracruz, and has a presence elsewhere.
In a submit on X, US State Department Deputy Secretary Christopher Landau described Oseguera’s loss of life as a “great development for Mexico, the US, Latin America, and the world.”
He added that he’s watching the chaotic scenes in Mexico “with great sadness and concern.”
The Michoacán Public Security Secretariat reported that “operational actions are ongoing at various points throughout the state to restore traffic flow in response to road blockades,” ensuing from “efforts to capture criminal targets.”
Meanwhile, the Guanajuato Security and Peace Secretariat reported fires at pharmacies and comfort shops in several components of the state.
“No injuries have been reported, but there has been property damage,” the assertion added, saying the deployment of a safety operation in coordination with the Army, the National Guard, and municipal police.
As a consequence of the violence, Air Canada suspended flights to Puerto Vallarta, a well-liked vacationer vacation spot on Mexico’s west coast.
This is a growing story and might be up to date.