Mayor Shot Dead, Top Cop’s Convoy Ambushed: El Mencho Gang’s Terror Trail In Mexico

Last Updated:February 23, 2026, 09:59 IST

Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, leader of CJNG, was killed in a military operation in western Mexico on Sunday.

El Mencho and his criminal cell within the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) have been linked to several high-profile terror cases in Mexico.

Omar García Harfuch, now Mexico’s Secretary of Security, survived a brutal assassination attempt by the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) in 2020. Today, he helped oversee the military operation that led to the death of the cartel’s leader, Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho."

On June 26, 2020, CJNG gunmen ambushed Harfuch in Lomas de Chapultepec while he was serving as Mexico City’s Secretary of Security. More than 400 rounds were fired at his convoy. Two bodyguards and one bystander were killed. Harfuch was hit three times but survived due to his vehicle’s armour. He publicly blamed El Mencho and confirmed arrests, including that of the cartel’s top assassin known as “El Vaca."

Fall of El Mencho

Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, leader of CJNG, was killed in a military operation in western Mexico on Sunday. He was captured during the raid but died of injuries sustained in a firefight while being transported for treatment. The operation was carried out with support from US intelligence. His death is seen as one of the biggest blows to organised crime in Mexico in recent years.

Harfuch confirmed the elimination of “El Moncho," a key CJNG leader linked to a criminal cell involved in highway robberies, extortion of truckers, kidnappings, drug trafficking and murders along the Mexico-Querétaro highway. Months of intelligence work and joint federal-state raids led to the seizure of weapons, drugs, vehicles and electronics.

Harfuch is known for aggressive anti-cartel campaigns and has been called “Mexico’s Batman." While past unverified claims from rival cartel members alleged indirect support for anti-CJNG factions, recent reports describe him as the cartels’ top adversary.

High-profile murders by CJNG

CJNG has been linked to a series of high-profile killings over the years.

In 2025, Uruapan mayor Carlos Manzo was executed in the town square during a Day of the Dead festival, in front of his family and a crowd. He had publicly criticised Mexico’s President over cartel violence. Reports named El Moncho as the intellectual author of the killing.

In 2017, a former CJNG member known as “El Cholo" was tortured, dismembered and his body displayed with narco-messages.

In 2011, 35 bodies of rival gang members were dumped from a truck in Boca del Río. The victims were reportedly tortured and had their hands tied.

In 2019, 14 police officers in Michoacán were killed in an ambush involving machine guns and vehicle burnings.

Since 2011, CJNG violence has been linked to more than 75,000 deaths, with a peak between 2020 and 2022. El Moncho’s cell focused on extortion murders of truckers rather than celebrities or politicians beyond Manzo.

News world Mayor Shot Dead, Top Cop’s Convoy Ambushed: El Mencho Gang’s Terror Trail In Mexico

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