Mexican Forces Kill CJNG Leader Known as El Mencho

(MENAFN) Mexican Army Special Forces killed seven members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), including its leader, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho,” during an operation on Sunday in Tapalpa, Jalisco, a known CJNG stronghold.

The operation was executed by Special Forces in coordination with the National Intelligence Center and the Attorney General's Office, deploying Air Force aircraft and National Guard units. According to Mexico’s Defense Ministry, military personnel were attacked during the mission and responded in self-defense, resulting in four cartel members killed at the scene and three more fatally wounded during airlift to Mexico City. Among the latter was Ruben “N,” alias Mencho, pending official forensic confirmation.

Two additional cartel members were arrested, and authorities seized multiple weapons and armored vehicles, including rocket launchers capable of targeting aircraft. Three special forces members were wounded and treated in Mexico City.

The Defense Ministry noted that US authorities provided critical intelligence through bilateral cooperation. Both the US and Mexico had offered rewards for information leading to El Mencho’s capture: $15 million and 300 million pesos, respectively.

Oseguera rose from a former police officer to lead the CJNG, which originated from the Milenio Cartel and has become one of Mexico’s most powerful and violent criminal organizations, notorious for extreme brutality and its global role in drug trafficking.

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