Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes is currently the most powerful criminal leader in the country. While the Sinaloa Cartel is eroding due to internal conflicts, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) has expanded its influence into each of Mexico’s 32 states, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration’s (DEA) 2025 annual report.
The power consolidated by “El Mencho”—as the leader and founder of the criminal organization is also known—has led him to top the lists of most wanted fugitives in both Mexico and the United States. In 2018, the then Attorney General’s Office (PGR) offered up to 30 million pesos for information leading to his arrest, while the State Department placed a $15 million bounty on the head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader.
Likewise, leading a criminal organization of such magnitude has placed Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes in the crosshairs of other rival criminal leaders who, like him, have aspired to reach the top of the Mexican underworld.
Given the ever-present possibility of his arrest or death, El Mencho’s security has become a top priority for the members of his criminal organization, but especially for one of his highest-ranking associates: Audias Flores Silva, alias El Jardinero (The Gardener).
