Cartel leader’s romantic partner helped lead to his capture, Mexican officials say

Mexican and U.S. agencies tracked one of Mexico’s most wanted cartel leaders through the location of one of his romantic partners.

At a press conference Monday morning, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum assured the public that the nation was “under control” after Mexican authorities carried out an operation Sunday against Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, 59, better known as “El Mencho,” the longtime leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.

His killing sparked a wave of violence across the country that claimed the lives of more than two dozen members of the Mexican National Guard.

The Mexican president, alongside Gen. Ricardo Trevilla Trejo, Mexico’s defense secretary, detailed the operation at the news conference, saying that information obtained while tracking one of Oseguera Cervantes’ romantic partners led authorities to locate him at a compound in Tapalpa, the Jalisco city where the cartel is based.

A shootout occurred when Oseguera Cervantes tried to escape, Trevilla Trejo said. After he was injured in the crossfire, Mexican authorities transported Oseguera Cervantes to Mexico City to receive medical treatment, but he died on the way.

At least eight cartel members and three Mexican officials were killed during the operation, according to Trevilla Trejo. The defense secretary called the cartel’s attack on Mexican authorities “very violent.”

The CJNG, as it is known by its initials in Spanish, is considered Mexico’s deadliest cartel and the main trafficker of drugs like methamphetamine and fentanyl into the United States.

While expressing condolences to the families of the slain officials, Trevilla Trejo broke down in tears.

“Mexico should be very proud of our armed forces,” Sheinbaum said.

Oseguera Cervantes has been seen as the Mexican government’s biggest prize in showing the Trump administration that it is committed to cracking down on cartels.

Although the operation was carried out by Mexican special forces, U.S. government officials confirmed that they provided intelligence to the Mexican government to assist in the operation.

Hundreds of roadblocks triggered by cartel violence were reported in 20 Mexican states, most of them in Jalisco, after the death of Oseguera Cervantes, Noticias Telemundo reported. As civilians cowered, they saw cars consumed by flames in the middle of the streets, among other acts of violence, as a potential war of succession begins to brew within the cartel.

Attacks were also reported on gas stations and banks, according to Omar García Harfuch, Mexico’s top security official. During Monday’s press conference, García Harfuch said that 70 people had been arrested in connection with this type of violence. More than 30 suspected cartel members and 27 members of Mexican law enforcement who responded to the outbreak of violence were also killed, he added.

“The most important thing right now is to guarantee peace and security throughout Mexico, and that is what is being done,” Sheinbaum said, adding that the blockades were lifted on Monday.

Early Monday morning, cars were stranded in Guadalajara, Mexico’s second-largest city and the capital of Jalisco. As the Associated Press reported, it was a marked change from Sunday, when the city was largely shut down. More than 1,000 people were stranded overnight at the Guadalajara Zoo, where they slept on buses, according to the AP.

Many international airlines canceled flights on Sunday in response to violence that erupted on the streets of Mexico, leaving travelers stranded across the country.

A State Department security alert asking U.S. citizens in several Mexican states to “shelter in place” remained in effect Monday.

The areas affected by the alert were in the states of Michoacán, Guerrero, Nuevo León, Tamaulipas, Baja California and Nayarit as well as the state of Jalisco, including Chapala, Guadalajara and the tourist town of Puerto Vallarta.

In an updated security alert Monday afternoon, the State Department also warned travelers who are in areas within the states of Colima, Guanajuato, Estado de México, Oaxaca, Puebla, Queretaro, San Luis Potosí, Veracruz and Zacatecas.

Sheinbaum said canceled flights, particularly some to Puerto Vallarta, should be fully restored by Tuesday.