Rhiannon Ingle
The Mexican army killed the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel in a military operation over the weekend (22 February).
On Sunday, troops targeted Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, known as 'El Mencho', in the western state of Jalisco.
Oseguera Cervantes, 59, was wounded in an operation to capture him in Tapalpa, about two hours drive south-west of Guadalajara and died while being flown to Mexico City, the Defence Department said in a statement.
The state is the base of the cartel, known for trafficking huge quantities of fentanyl and other drugs to the US, per the Associated Press.
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During the operation, troops were fired on, and four people were shot dead at the scene.
Three others, including Oseguera Cervantes, were injured and later died, the statement said.
Two suspects were arrested. Armoured vehicles, rocket launchers and other weapons were seized.
Three members of the armed forces were wounded and were reported to have been receiving medical treatment.
Oseguera Cervantes has played a central role in drug trafficking since the 1990s.
In 1994, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California convicted him of conspiracy to distribute heroin and he served almost three years in prison.
After his release, he returned to Mexico and resumed trafficking.
Since 2017, he has faced multiple indictments in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
The most recent superseding indictment, filed on April 5 2022, charges Oseguera Cervantes with conspiracy and distribution of controlled substances (methamphetamine, cocaine, and fentanyl) for the purpose of illegal importation into the United States and use of firearms during and in connection with drug trafficking offences.
Oseguera Cervantes is also charged under the Drug Kingpin Enforcement Act for directing a continuing criminal enterprise.
The Jalisco New Generation Cartel, known as CJNG, is one of the most powerful and fastest-growing criminal organisations in Mexico and was born in 2009.
In February, the Trump administration designated the cartel as a foreign terrorist organisation.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has criticised the 'kingpin' strategy of previous administrations that took out cartel leaders only to trigger explosions of violence as cartels fractured.
While she has remained popular in Mexico, security is a persistent concern, and since US President Donald Trump took office a year ago, she has been under tremendous pressure to show results against drug trafficking, the Associated Press reports.
The DEA considers the cartel to be as powerful as the Sinaloa cartel, one of Mexico’s most infamous criminal groups, with a presence in all 50 US states.
It is one of the main suppliers of cocaine to the US market and, like the Sinaloa cartel, earns billions from the production of fentanyl and methamphetamines.
Sinaloa, however, has been weakened by infighting after the loss of its leaders Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada and Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman, who are both in US custody.