Mencho’s Death Prompts U.S. Alerts and Boosts Mexico Security Strategy
Mexican authorities killed Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known in criminal circles as mencho, in an operation in the sierra of Jalisco, and the U. S. State Department issued security alerts for Americans in Mexico on Feb. 23, 2026. The Trump administration congratulated its Mexican counterparts by several channels for the success of the operation, and experts say the outcome will favor bilateral relations.
Death of Mencho in Jalisco
Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, alias El Mencho, was killed after an operation carried out in the sierra of the State of Jalisco by Mexican authorities with intelligence support from the United States. The operation ended the decades during which he evaded security forces. Press accounts noted a complex security belt around the capo; his death was described in coverage as caza mayor — big game — against a longtime fugitive.
U. S. State Department Security Alert
The U. S. State Department issued alerts for U. S. citizens in Mexico on Feb. 23, 2026, while the Government of Trump offered congratulations to Mexican counterparts for the operation’s success. Experts quoted in the reporting say the action will favor bilateral relations between the two governments.
Impact on Mexico’s Security Strategy
Authorities and analysts presented the death of El Mencho as the major operational success for the security cabinet led by Omar García Harfuch and a clear boost for the current security strategy of President Claudia Sheinbaum. The fall of the leader of the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación has been framed as not only the biggest blow to narcotrafficking in recent years but also the greatest achievement in a little more than a year for the government’s security effort.
Comments from Erubiel Tirado
Erubiel Tirado, coordinator of the Programa de Seguridad Nacional y Democracia at the Universidad Iberoamericana Ciudad de México, said the main difference between the current strategy and the previous administration is action. Tirado noted an evident activity against organized crime that targets leaderships, summarizing the contrast with the earlier slogan “Abrazos, no balazos” used under Andrés Manuel López Obrador by saying that, compared with the last term, there are no longer hugs but there are bullets. He called the operation a major internal and external triumph that sends an international signal that Mexico has control over its security as the inauguration of the World Cup 2026 approaches.
CJNG, Detentions and Seizures
The Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación was described as the most powerful criminal organization in Mexico, particularly after the internal war within the Sinaloa Cartel and that cartel’s weakening. The group is present in almost the entire national territory and is said to have tentacles in more than 40 countries. The U. S. anti-drug agency, the DEA, characterizes the organization as one of the most powerful, influential and ruthless. Unlike some other criminal groups where authority is divided, El Mencho was portrayed as the undisputed head of his cartel.
Officials emphasize that the current security strategy, which Sheinbaum says also addresses the causes of violence while adding intelligence and investigation, replicates elements used when she was head of the Government of Mexico City from 2019 to 2023, a period when García Harfuch also served as a principal security figure. García Harfuch has said he has detained more than 40, 000 people for high-impact crimes during the current administration, and authorities note that the strategy has so far translated into record figures of drug seizures and arrests.
Past Captures and Context
The reporting contrasts the current actions with the previous administration’s approach while noting that some major captures did occur under the earlier government, including Ovidio Guzmán, El Ratón, Néstor Isidro Pérez Salas, El Nini 09 and Caro Quintero. The operational success against El Mencho is presented as amplified by the combination of Mexican ground action and U. S. intelligence support.
One item in the original reporting ends mid-sentence and is unclear in the provided context.
Experts continue to assess how the death of El Mencho will affect cartel dynamics and bilateral security cooperation, but immediate official reactions include the U. S. security alert for Americans in Mexico and public congratulations from the Government of Trump for Mexican authorities’ operation on Feb. 23, 2026.
