The Mexican military killed Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, the most wanted drug lord in Mexico and one of the most hunted criminals in the world, on Sunday, February 23, 2026, triggering a wave of retaliatory violence that spread across at least five states and forced the United States and Canada to issue emergency advisories for their citizens.
The operation, carried out in the small town of Tapalpa in the western state of Jalisco, ended a decades-long hunt for the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, known by its Spanish initials CJNG. It marks the most significant blow to organised crime in Mexico since the arrests of Sinaloa cartel founders Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán and Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada.
Who Was El Mencho? Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes
Oseguera Cervantes, 59, was born in Aguililla, Michoacán, and built one of the world’s most dangerous criminal empires over three decades. Key facts about his rise:
1994: Convicted of heroin conspiracy in a US federal court in California. Served nearly three years and was deported to Mexico.
2011: Co-founded the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) with Erik Valencia Salazar after splitting from the Sinaloa network.
2015: CJNG shot down a Mexican military helicopter with a rocket launcher during a government operation in Jalisco.
2020: Cartel members attacked Mexico City Police Chief Omar García Harfuch with rifles and grenades in the capital. Two bodyguards and a bystander were killed.
2022: Indicted in Washington DC on charges of manufacturing and distributing fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine for importation into the US.
2025: Classified as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the US State Department. His son, Rubén Oseguera “El Menchito,” sentenced to life in a US prison.
Mike Vigil, former chief of international operations for the US Drug Enforcement Administration, put it plainly. “El Mencho controlled everything,” Vigil said. “He was like a country’s dictator.”
The DEA considered CJNG as powerful as the Sinaloa cartel, with a presence across all 50 US states. In 2019, the agency estimated CJNG supplied at least one-third of all drugs entering the US by air and sea. The US State Department had placed a $15 million bounty on Oseguera’s head.
How Was El Mencho Killed?
Security forces from multiple federal branches of the Mexican military carried out the operation in Tapalpa, a town of roughly 20,000 people in western Jalisco. Cartel members opened fire on the soldiers during the raid.
Mexico’s Secretariat of National Defence said four cartel gunmen were killed at the scene. Oseguera Cervantes and two others were seriously wounded. All three died while being airlifted to a hospital in Mexico City. Three Mexican military personnel were also injured and transported to the capital for treatment.
Authorities seized armoured vehicles, rocket launchers, and other heavy weapons during the operation.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum praised the agencies involved. “We work every day for the peace, security, justice, and well-being of Mexico,” she said.
Where Did the Violence Spread?
Cartel members launched coordinated retaliation within hours. Here is what unfolded across the country:
Guadalajara: Streets emptied as residents sheltered indoors. Jalisco Governor Pablo Lemus Navarro suspended all public transport and urged citizens to stay home.
Puerto Vallarta: Fires and smoke spread across the tourist city. A jail guard was killed during a prison riot. Several buses were torched.
Zapopan and Tapalpa: At least seven National Guard members killed, according to state officials cited by the Associated Press.
Guanajuato: Fires reported at pharmacies and convenience stores. “No injuries have been reported, but there has been property damage,” the state security secretariat confirmed.
Airports: Delta, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, and Air Canada cancelled flights to Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara. Airports later resumed normal operations Sunday afternoon.
Carlos Navarro, 54, a US-Mexico dual citizen stranded in Guadalajara, took shelter in a Walmart after his bus was cancelled. “You hear about it, but it’s very different to hear it on the news than to experience it firsthand,” he told CNN.
When Did It Happen and What Is the Impact on Travel?
The military operation took place on Sunday, February 23, 2026. The retaliatory violence that followed disrupted air travel at two of Mexico’s busiest airports. Delta Air Lines, Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, and Air Canada all cancelled flights to Puerto Vallarta and Guadalajara, leaving tourists stranded. Mexico’s Federal Civil Aviation Agency later confirmed that both airports, along with Tepic, had resumed normal operations by Sunday afternoon.
The United States issued a shelter-in-place alert for American nationals in affected parts of Mexico. Canada issued a similar advisory urging its citizens to keep a low profile. India’s embassy in Mexico also advised Indian nationals in Jalisco, Tamaulipas, Michoacán, Guerrero, and Nuevo León to stay indoors and avoid unnecessary movement.
Carlos Navarro, 54, a US-Mexico dual citizen caught in Guadalajara while travelling to visit family, took shelter in a Walmart after his bus was cancelled. “You hear about it, but it’s very different to hear it on the news than to experience it firsthand,” he told CNN. “It makes you very sad. It makes you very sad because I love my country.”
Four football matches, including a high-profile women’s league fixture between Chivas and América, were postponed due to the unrest.
Why Did US Get Involved?
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed US intelligence support for the operation. “The United States provided intelligence support to the Mexican government in order to assist with an operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco,” she said, adding that El Mencho was “one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into our homeland.”
US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau called the killing “a great development for Mexico, the US, Latin America, and the world.”
Vigil said the operation sent “a strong message to Donald Trump’s administration that they are fighting aggressively and effectively.” He added: “This is a big opportunity for Mexico and the United States if they work together.”
Security analyst David Saucedo warned the succession question now defines what comes next. If cartel leadership passes to Oseguera’s relatives, Sunday’s violence may continue. If outside figures take control, a period of reduced confrontation is possible. Who fills the vacuum will determine whether this operation ends a chapter, or starts a deadlier one.
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