**Girlfriend’s Visit Exposed Mexican Kingpin ‘El Mencho,’ Triggering Deadly Operation and Wave of Violence**
The Mexican government on February 23 (local time) released additional details about the operation that killed notorious cartel leader **Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes**, also known as “El Mencho,” and the severe موج of violence that followed.
El Mencho had been wanted in both the United States and Mexico.
President **Claudia Sheinbaum**, alongside two cabinet ministers, confirmed that the operation carried out the previous day resulted in the death of the leader of the **Jalisco New Generation Cartel** (CJNG), one of Mexico’s largest criminal organizations, known for trafficking substances such as fentanyl into the United States.
Sheinbaum said order has since been restored after cartel members retaliated for the death of the 59-year-old leader by blocking roads, setting vehicles ablaze, and torching supermarkets and other businesses across multiple Mexican states.
During a press conference in Mexico City, Security Minister **Omar García Harfuch** said the retaliatory attacks left 25 members of the National Guard, one security officer, and one civilian dead.
“Security forces neutralized 30 armed cartel members. We also arrested at least 70 others across seven states in Mexico,” García Harfuch added.
Defense Minister **Ricardo Trevilla Trejo** became emotional as he offered condolences to the families of fallen soldiers.
He also revealed a striking detail: authorities were able to pinpoint El Mencho’s hideout after tracking his girlfriend, whose visit ultimately exposed his location.
Mexican officials said they located the cartel leader at a remote cabin after following his girlfriend’s movements. Security forces surrounded the property in Tapalpa, in the state of Jalisco. When El Mencho attempted to flee into the जंगल, a firefight broke out between his bodyguards and Mexican troops, leaving eight cartel members dead, according to British newspaper **The Independent**, citing General Trevilla.
El Mencho was shot and later found in a wooded area near the cabin. Along with two bodyguards, he was airlifted by helicopter to a hospital for treatment but died en route.
U.S. President **Donald Trump** also weighed in on Truth Social, saying Mexico must intensify its actions against powerful cartels. He has pressured the Mexican government on the issue for months.
Both the Mexican and U.S. governments confirmed that Washington provided intelligence support for the operation. However, President Sheinbaum emphasized that the planning and execution of the mission were carried out entirely by Mexican authorities.
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### Who Was El Mencho?
El Mencho grew up in Aguililla, in the state of Michoacán, Mexico, in a poor family of avocado farmers.
At age 14, he reportedly began guarding marijuana plantations before illegally immigrating to California in the 1980s.
He was arrested multiple times in the United States on drug-related charges and deported before later joining local police forces in Cabo Corrientes and Tomatlán in his 30s.
After leaving law enforcement, he joined the Milenio cartel and married Rosalinda González Valencia, the sister of a cartel leader.
He gradually rose through the ranks of the Milenio organization — which had once allied with the infamous Sinaloa cartel — until arrests and leadership deaths fractured the alliance, sparking a bloody power struggle that ultimately paved the way for his rise.
