Mexico's most powerful drug lord, Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera, was shot dead by Mexican Army forces in the city of Puerto Vallarta, triggering a wave of violent reprisals by his cartel's gunmen, who torched vehicles, buses and businesses across the western state of Jalisco.
Oseguera, the longtime head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, was killed during a military operation that involved prolonged exchanges of fire between soldiers and heavily armed cartel members, according to an official statement from Mexico's Defense Ministry. Four additional cartel gunmen were killed and three were wounded in the operation. Three members of the security forces were also injured.
The killing marks a dramatic escalation in Mexico's war against the drug cartels and comes amid intense pressure from President Donald Trump's administration on Mexico to curb the flow of narcotics into the US.
In the immediate aftermath of Oseguera's death, cartel gunmen fanned out across Puerto Vallarta, setting fire to vehicles and shops. Armed men also stormed the international airport in Guadalajara, Jalisco's capital and Mexico's second-largest city, igniting fires within the airport grounds.
Videos posted on social media showed panicked passengers fleeing for safety. Local media reported multiple flight cancellations at the airport, which serves the Guadalajara metropolitan area.
Another video circulating online appeared to show Mexican police officers killed in an ambush set up by Jalisco cartel gunmen near Guadalajara. No official death toll has yet been released in the latest outbreak of violence, but the footage is the first indication of fatalities during the clashes.
US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau described Oseguera's killing as "a great development for Mexico, the US, Latin America and the world" following the military operation. "I am watching the scenes of violence from Mexico with sadness and great concern," Landau wrote in a post on X.
Oseguera, a former Mexican police officer, led the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, widely considered the most powerful organized crime group in the country and a leading cocaine smuggler into the US. Mexican authorities say the cartel also controls extensive fuel-smuggling operations and is involved in a range of other criminal enterprises throughout Mexico and the US.
Known for his sophisticated paramilitary tactics, Oseguera commanded hundreds of well-trained and well-equipped gunmen. He controlled vast territories, particularly in his home state of Jalisco, and expanded his influence while waging a bloody battle for control of the western state of Michoacan.
The US State Department had offered a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to Oseguera's arrest. The Jalisco New Generation Cartel, also known as CJNG, is one of Mexico's most powerful and fastest-growing criminal organizations, founded in 2009. In February, the Trump administration designated the cartel a foreign terrorist organization.
The cartel has been among the most aggressive in its attacks on the military, including targeting helicopters, and has pioneered the use of explosive-laden drones and roadside bombs. In 2020, it carried out a brazen assassination attempt in the heart of Mexico City using grenades and high-powered rifles against the then–capital police chief, who now serves as Mexico's federal security secretary.
In recent months, Mexico's government and President Claudia Sheinbaum have faced mounting pressure from Washington to take decisive action against the drug cartels, criminal organizations that control a multibillion-dollar industry funneling narcotics into the US. The crackdown is widely seen as an effort to prevent direct US intervention on Mexican soil.
