Published April 1st, 2026
BY DANIELA FOLEY
After the killing of “El Mencho” left Mexico with airports and buses torched, murdered citizens and stranded tourists, the people of Mexico live each day in fear of what is to come as the power of Mexican cartels only appears more apparent.
“El Mencho,” or Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel or CJNG, was killed Feb. 22 by a U.S. intelligence-aided Mexican military operation, yet the impact is still felt nation-wide. According to AP News, CJNG is one of the most prominent traffickers of methamphetamine and fentanyl into the United States. The killing of the cartel leader came as President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo faced increasing pressure from the United States to restrict drug trafficking.
Historically, cartels controlled only limited areas while trafficking one drug, but in recent years, cartels have expanded to trafficking multiple drugs across large areas. CJNG is one of the most dangerous cartels in Mexico, with the discovery of human mass graves in Jalisco this past May not an isolated event, as reported by CBS News. President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo points to the demand for drugs and the United States’ lack of gun control as motive to profit and means to access guns. CBS News reports the total count of missing people in Jalisco alone to be 127,000.
Though in 2025 the DEA reported the prosecution of several members of CJNG, such as former leaders Abigael González Valencia and José González-Valencia and El Mencho’s son, “El Menchito,” Rubén Oseguera González, it is simply not enough to protect the Mexican people.
The killing of El Mencho did more to appease the United States government demands of increased drug restriction than protect Mexican citizens. In response to El Mencho’s death, CJNG launched an attack of widespread violence on Mexico, blocking roads and setting fires to vehicles. According to CBS News, at least 73 people have died in the U.S.-aided killing of El Mencho. The death of the drug lord did strike the cartels, but the retaliation Mexican people face is a demonstration of their power over the government.
Learning first-hand of the effects of El Mencho’s killing from my family in Mexico, I understand panic and fear is widespread. According to AP News, streets are riddled with cars burnt by the cartel at more than 250 points across Mexico to block military intervention, buildings have been set aflame, school has been canceled, citizens have been advised against leaving their houses, travel is nearly impossible, and people are missing.
The counterattacks launched by the cartels instill fear, as citizens have seen little effort from the government to protect communities. Mexican citizens shouldn’t fear for their lives, but the constant reminder of cartel power through lives lost and safety concerns makes that impossible.
