Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes—known as “El Mencho,” the top leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG)—died last February following a Mexican Army operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco, aimed at capturing him.
Following this event, a restructuring of the criminal group began, as someone had to step in to lead the cartel.
Shortly after Oseguera Cervantes’s death, several names of criminals emerged as potential successors to “El Mencho.” One of them was Audías Flores Silva—known as “El Jardinero”—who was arrested last April; he had been one of the most wanted drug traffickers in both Mexico and the United States.
Mexico’s government security cabinet reported that “El Jardinero” was arrested during a “surgical” operation carried out by Navy Special Forces agents in the state of Nayarit.
At the time of his arrest, he was accompanied by a security detail consisting of about 30 pickup trucks and around 60 men who attempted to protect him, but he was ultimately taken into custody.
This development ruled him out as a potential future leader of the CJNG.
The name most frequently mentioned as the criminal group’s new leader is Juan Carlos Valencia González, a U.S. citizen and former stepson of “El Mencho.”
