Cartel gunmen have begun carrying out terrorist attacks in various states in Mexico in response to the death of the country’s most powerful terrorist cartel leader, Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes. Mexico’s government confirmed the death of the cartel boss, which resulted from an enforcement operation.
UPDATE, 1:10 p.m.: Mexican officials confirmed the death of Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes early Sunday afternoon. Officials reported that El Mencho died during a targeted enforcment operation where government forces killed four gunmen. Officials claim El Mencho was among those killed in the gun battle.
The chaos began on Sunday early morning when cartel gunmen began setting up blockades in four key states that are controlled by El Mencho’s terrorist organization Cartel Jalisco New Generation (CJNG), one of several cartels that have been designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the U.S. government.
U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration
The gunmen deployed road spikes, carjacked vehicles, set fire to buildings, and brought several cities to a standstill in the border state of Tamaulipas, as well as the central state of Guanajuato and the western states of Michoacan and Jalisco. Soon after, states like Nayarit, Colima, and others reported similar chaos. The hyperviolent reaction follows a high-profile military operation carried out in the state of Jalisco, where military forces reportedly killed El Mencho during a clash with his gunmen.
Several top news organizations in Mexico began reporting the death of El Mencho on Sunday morning. The death of the top cartel figure has not been confirmed by Mexico’s government.
Breitbart Texas consulted with key sources within the Mexican government and with various U.S. agencies that are part of the intelligence community, which revealed that the current information and available intelligence point to a strong possibility that Mexican military forces killed the elusive cartel figure. Other information points to an attempt to capture one of his top lieutenants and additional operations aimed at decapitating CJNG.
As violence erupted across the region, the U.S. Embassy and Consulates in Mexico issued a security alert, warning, “Due to ongoing security operations and related road blockages and criminal activity, U.S. citizens in the named locations should shelter in place until further notice.”
If confirmed, the death of El Mencho or the capture of top CJNG figures would strengthen the credibility of Mexico’s efforts to fight drug cartels as requested by the Trump administration. In the past, Mexico had acted against other organizations like the Sinaloa Cartel, the Gulf Cartel, and other smaller cartels — CJNG remained largely untouched.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at [email protected].
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at [email protected].
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