Mexico takes out most-wanted cartel leader: Why that means nationwide upheaval
National Guard members patrol the area outside the general prosecutor's headquarters in Mexico City, Feb. 22, 2026, after authorities reported that the Mexican army had killed Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Rub茅n Oseguera Cervantes, known as "El Mencho."
Ginette Riquelme/AP
Mexico City
Mexico鈥檚 capture and killing of a most-wanted cartel leader led to a swift outbreak in violence over the weekend 鈥� and underscored the trade-offs between government goals and effects on local communities, two decades after the Mexican government first announced a militarized effort to dismantle cartels in 2006.
On Sunday, Mexican security forces killed the leader of the notoriously violent and geographically far-reaching Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG): Nemesio Rub茅n Oseguera Cervantes, known as 鈥淓l Mencho.鈥� The operation sent several states across the country 鈥� from the U.S. border to picturesque tourist destinations 鈥� into lockdown.
In at least a dozen states, roads were blocked by armed men, and vehicles and commercial spaces were set ablaze. Some international and domestic flights were canceled into the state of Jalisco, and most of the violence unfurled in its capital, Guadalajara, which will host some of this summer鈥檚 World Cup matches. The U.S. Embassy in Mexico living in or visiting nine Mexican states to shelter in place.
Why We Wrote This
Taking down a drug cartel leader is a win for a country. But the swift violence that often follows is a public reminder that peace might not be imminent.
Even in parts of the country where no reports of disruptions were made, like Mexico City, police and security forces were on alert. Trucks carrying soldiers standing in flatbeds drove slowly down main roads with their lights flashing, and were parked on overpasses to monitor vehicles coming into the city.聽
Mr. Oseguera was one of the world鈥檚 most-wanted drug traffickers, with the United States offering a $15 million bounty for information that could lead to his arrest.
Under growing pressure from the U.S., Mexico is running one of its most aggressive campaigns against cartels in a decade. President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo has transferred scores of cartel operatives to the U.S., and hand in hand with her security chief, Omar Garc铆a Harfuch, Mexico says it made 37,000 arrests, seized 300 tons of drugs, and destroyed 1,600 drug laboratories by the end of 2025.聽
In his second term, President Donald Trump has threatened to use U.S. military force against Mexican cartels, which he claims 鈥渞un鈥� the country.
Mr. Oseguera鈥檚 organization is known for its excessive use of violence and military-style weapons. In a 2015 military attempt to capture the kingpin, his cartel famously used a rocket launcher to shoot down a government helicopter. Earlier that same year, it killed 15 state police officers with assault-style rifles.
CJNG split off from the powerful Sinaloa Cartel in 2009 and grew, in part, by teaming up with smaller criminal groups across the country 鈥� and the region. It is believed to operate as far south as Bolivia. Authorities say the cartel traffics cocaine, fentanyl, and methamphetamine, in addition to carrying out other criminal activities like fuel theft, extortion, migrant smuggling, and illegal mining.
As Mexicans have learned since former President Felipe Calder贸n, decked out in military fatigues, declared war on drug trafficking organizations in 2006, just because a cartel boss is taken out doesn鈥檛 mean peace follows.聽The roadblocks and attacks on property Sunday were expressions of retaliation and shows of force by cartel members against the state. More violence could follow in coming weeks and months as cartel members jockey to fill the leadership vacuum.
鈥淟eadership removals rarely reduce violence long term,鈥� Sandra Pellegrini, a senior Latin America analyst for ACLED (Armed Conflict Location & Event Data), an independent group聽monitoring global conflicts, said in a statement. Often, they instead trigger 鈥渋nstability as factions compete for power.鈥澛�
Mr. Oseguera鈥檚 death is the most significant elimination of a Mexican kingpin since 2016, when the former head of the Sinaloa Cartel, Joaqu铆n 鈥淓l Chapo鈥� Guzm谩n, was captured. He鈥檚 serving life in prison in the U.S., where he was extradited in 2017.
But revenge聽attacks and infighting in the state of Sinaloa have brought daily life to a standstill several times since then.
The Mexican government said Mr. Oseguera, a former police officer, was wounded in a clash with armed forces in the town of Tapalpa, Jalisco, on Sunday and died in transit to Mexico City. Six other alleged cartel operatives were killed, alongside three soldiers, during the capture. Those numbers grew over the course of the day Sunday, as retaliation attacks took place, concentrated in two states. The operation was supported by U.S. intelligence, which, according to reporting by Reuters, was provided by a new U.S.-military-led task force specializing in mapping Mexican cartels.
President Sheinbaum urged calm on Sunday. In her Monday press conference, she said that stability had been reestablished, with the estimated 250 roadblocks that had affected 20 states the day before having been cleared.