1 of 2 | Firefighters and members of the Morelia police work at the scene where a vehicle is set on fire by suspected members of organized crime after the killing of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as El Mencho, leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, in Morelia, Mexico, on Sunday, February 22, 2026. Photo by Ivan Villanueva/EPA
Mexico on Sunday said it killed “El Mencho,” the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, in an operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco, a Mexican state known for trafficking fentanyl and other drugs to the United States.
JNGC leader Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, who is also known as “El Mencho,” died while being transported to a hospital in Mexico City after the operation, Mexico’s Ministry of Defense said in a statement.
The military killed four alleged cartel members at the scene. Three others who were seriously wounded, including Cervantes, died during their air transfer, military officials said.
The news came after roadblocks, explosions and violence were reported in Tapalpa and Guadalajara, among other locations in the western coastal Mexican state of Jalisco, Fox News and El Financiero reported.
As violence spread to more areas and more roads were blocked, Jalisco Gov. Pablo Lemus Navarro said in a post on X that he instructed security forces to activate the “red code in order to prevent acts against the population.”
He recommended that people stay in their homes and off the roads — and suspended public transportation — as blockades and “violent incidents” spread to other parts of the country after the operation to arrest Cervantes.
“Federal forces carried out an operation in Tapalpa a few hours ago, which has led to clashes in the area,” Navarro said. “As a result of said Operation, in various points of that region and in other parts of Jalisco, individuals have burned and blocked vehicles with the aim of hindering the actions of the authorities.”
According to the Defense Ministry, Special Forces of the Mexican Army, in conjunction with various Air Force aircraft and the National Guard’s Immediate Reaction Special Force, planned and carried out the operation to arrest Cervantes.
The soldiers were attacked, “and in defense of their safety they repelled the aggression,” the Defense Ministry said, resulting in the seven dead cartel members.
Three members of the military were also injured in the operation. Their condition was unknown, but they have been transferred to medical facilities in Mexico City for urgent care, officials said.
Two members of the criminal organization were detained, and various weapons, including anti-aircraft rocket launchers and armored vehicles were confiscated.
President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico recognized her armed forces in a statement.
“We work every day for peace, security, justice and the well-being of Mexico,” she said.
The U.S. Embassy in Mexico urged U.S. residents in the region to “shelter in place.”
After the operation, U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Christopher Landau said, “This was a great development for Mexico, the U.S., Latin America and the world.”
“The good guys are stronger than the bad guys,” he said on X.
Cervantes, who had built up JNGC over more than a decade, has been indicted numerous times by the U.S. government for drug trafficking and other allegations.
The United States has been pushing for Cervantes’ arrest. The State Department offered a reward of up to $15 million for information on the 59-year-old man.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the United States assisted in the operation by providing Mexico with intelligence.
Cervantes served three years in prison in the early 1990s after a conviction for conspiracy to distribute heroin, but rejoined the drug trafficking game after he was released from jail.
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Team USA poses with their medals for a group photo after winning the men’s hockey gold medal game between the USA and Canada at the Milano Santagiulia Ice Hockey Arena in Milan, Italy, on February 22, 2026. USA defeated Canada 2-1 in overtime. Canada takes home the silver and Slovakia won bronze. Photo by Richard Ellis/UPI | License Photo
