The United States government has identified Juan Carlos Valencia González—alias “03” or “El Pelón”—as the new leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) following the death of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes (alias “El Mencho”) during a Mexican security forces operation last February.
In an update containing data current as of June 2026, the U.S. National Counterterrorism Center’s Counterterrorism Guide states that Valencia González has been the “leader of the CJNG since the death of ‘El Mencho’ in February 2026.”
It notes that the U.S. State Department is offering a $5 million reward for information leading to his arrest.
*The Wall Street Journal* had previously identified “03”—the founder and coordinator of the *Grupo Élite* (Elite Group), the CJNG’s armed wing—as the cartel’s new leader.
“03” is believed to be one of the alleged masterminds behind the August 2016 kidnapping of Iván Archivaldo Guzmán Salazar and Alfredo Guzmán Salazar, the sons of Joaquín Guzmán Loera (“El Chapo”). They were released shortly thereafter.
According to the Counterterrorism Guide, Valencia operates with the support of Julio Alberto Castillo Rodríguez (alias “El Chorro”), Oseguera’s son-in-law, and Hugo Gonzalo Mendoza Gaytán (alias “El Sapo”), a key cartel lieutenant.
