Unlock the free White House Watch newsletter
Your guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the world
Mexico’s military intelligence tracked down the girlfriend of Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera, a cartel leader who died after a shootout with his security detail, officials said.
Defense Minister Gen. Ricardo Treviño Trejo said Monday that authorities, acting on Mexican and U.S. intelligence, had on Saturday tracked down “a trusted associate of one of El Mencho’s romantic partners,” who took him to a building in Tapalpa, Jalisco state.
“There, this fellow met El Mencho and on February 21st he left the premises,” Trevilla said. “Information was received that El Mencho remained in place, surrounded by security details. The operation was planned for the same day.”
The killing of Oseguera, leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) and one of the world’s most wanted drug traffickers, is a major coup for Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, who is under heavy US pressure to combat fentanyl trafficking.
The minister said Oseguera was injured after cartel members resisted his arrest “very violently” and died while being transported to Mexico City.
Oseguera and his “inner circle” initially fled to a wooded area on the outskirts of Tapalpa, Trevila said, where they fired on security forces and an air force helicopter, which had to make an emergency landing.
Two bodyguards were also injured in the confrontation and died en route to medical care, he said, adding that five more cartel members died during or after the operation.
The 59-year-old had transformed the CJNG into one of Mexico’s two most powerful crime groups, expanding its reach across much of the country and playing a leading role in moving fentanyl and other drugs into the US.
News of his death sparked violent confrontations across Mexico on Sunday, as CJNG members burned cars and blocked about 250 roads. Jalisco authorities said 81 convenience stores were attacked and 22 branches of a state-owned bank were set on fire.
Mexico’s Security Minister Omar GarcÃa Harfuch said 25 National Guard members were killed in six separate attacks in Jalisco on Sunday, along with 30 cartel members.
Sheinbaum said all obstacles had been cleared by Monday morning and security forces and state governments were cooperating closely to maintain order.
“The most important thing now is to guarantee peace and security for the entire population of Mexico, and that is what we are doing,” he said. “Today is a quiet day.”
US President Donald Trump has threatened to launch attacks on cartels inside Mexico as he pressures the country to take action against organized crime bosses whom he blames for fueling drug-related deaths in the US.
But analysts have warned that removing the CJNG leader could lead to the fragmentation of the cartel, which has a presence in most of the country’s 32 states.
The Mexican peso fell 0.45 percent in early trading on Monday on fears of potentially prolonged violence.
