Assassinations, drugs and violence: Who was 'El Mencho' and his cartel?

Who is 'El Mencho', his cartel and why does his death matter? Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes founded the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, which became one of Mexico's fastest-growing and most dangerous criminal organisations. Monday 23 February 2026 12:36, UK 3:35 Share Violence after Mexican cartel boss killed in raid Why you can trust Sky News One of Mexico's most notorious drug lords "El Mencho" was killed in a military operation on Sunday in Tapalpa, sparking widespread retaliatory violence. The 59-year-old, whose real name was Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes , was originally from the western state of Michoacan and had been heavily involved in drug trafficking since the 1990s. He previously spent almost three years in a US prison after being convicted in 1994 of conspiracy to distribute heroin by a court in California. After his release, Oseguera Cervantes returned to Mexico, where he continued drug trafficking and was indicted several times by US courts since 2017. At the time of his death, he was one of Washington's most wanted fugitives. His killing is a major win for US President Donald Trump, whose administration provided intelligence support for the operation. Read the latest from Sky News In January, the president claimed that "cartels are running Mexico" and promised action. The president has repeatedly said that tackling the flow of drugs, specifically fentanyl , into the US is a priority for his administration. Mr Trump previously introduced tariffs against Mexico, China and Canada, citing the trafficking of fentanyl into the US as the emergency justification for the move. Datawrapper This content is provided by Datawrapper , which may be using cookies and other technologies. To show you this content, we need your permission to use cookies. You can use the buttons below to amend your preferences to enable Datawrapper cookies or to allow those cookies just once. You can change your settings at any time via the Privacy Options . Unfortunately we have be...