Latest news with #ElMencho
Los Angeles Times
02-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Los Angeles Times
Criminal investigation against Los Alegres del Barranco suspended after band releases anti-narcocorrido
Months after facing backlash for projecting the image of an alleged drug cartel leader during a concert, Los Alegres del Barranco have reached an agreement with Mexican authorities that would temporarily pause a criminal investigation into the band. The Council of the Judiciary of the State of Jalisco agreed on Monday to lift the criminal proceedings that began after the Mexican corrido band behind songs like 'La Gente del Chapo' and 'La Muerte del Comandante' displayed a photograph of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes (also known as 'El Mencho'), the reputed leader of the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación, during their March 29 concert at the Telmex Auditorium in Zapopan, a suburb of Guadalajara. The decision was made after the members of Los Alegres del Barranco agreed to several conditions, including releasing an anti-narcocorrido track and agreeing to a probationary period of six months, Billboard reported. On June 15, the band released a song called 'El Consejo,' about the consequences youth can face if they get involved with drug lords and cartels. 'It's worth noting that after accepting [Jalisco] Gov. Pablo Lemus's invitation to record an anti-corrido, the song 'El Consejo has more than 2 million cumulative plays on all of the band's platforms,' Los Alegres del Barranco said in a statement to The Times. The agreement requires that the band members maintain residency in Guadalajara, that they periodically check in with state authorities and that they hold conversations with incarcerated youth, encouraging them to stay away from organized crime. The case will be dropped after a six-month period if the musicians meet the conditions, the band said. Days after the group's controversial concert, the U.S. State Department revoked the band's work and tourist visas, which resulted in the cancellation of its scheduled U.S. show dates, including a stop on May 25 at Pico Rivera Sports Arena. 'I'm a firm believer in freedom of expression, but that doesn't mean that expression should be free of consequences,' Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau wrote in an April 1 post to X announcing the visa revocations. 'In the Trump Administration, we take seriously our responsibility over foreigners' access to our country. The last thing we need is a welcome mat for people who extol criminals and terrorists,' he added. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum also criticized Los Alegres del Barranco during a May 31 press conference. 'No apology can be made for violence or criminal groups,' she said. Roughly a third of Mexico's states and many cities have banned the performance of narcocorridos in recent years.
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
34 bodies unearthed during construction work in Mexico
Mexican authorities discovered the bodies of 34 people in a mass grave in a western region wracked by cartel violence, the state prosecutor's office said Thursday. The remains were found during construction work in Zapopan in Jalisco state, home to one of the country's most powerful drug cartels, prosecutor Salvador Gonzalez told a news conference. Ground-penetrating radar and cadaver dogs were used to search for bodies following the initial discovery in February, he said. Criminal groups in the Latin American nation often bury their victims in unmarked graves, or incinerate them to leave no trace. Jalisco is one of the Mexican regions worst affected by a missing persons crisis that has seen more than 127,000 people vanish. The state is a stronghold of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of the drug trafficking groups classified by President Donald Trump's administration as a terrorist organization. The Jalisco cartel has been accused of using fake job advertisements to lure new members and of torturing and killing recruits who resist. In March, a group of people looking for missing relatives found charred bones, shoes and clothing at a suspected training ground for the cartel. The cartel is led by Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, who is better known as "El Mencho." Washington has offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his capture. Criminal violence has claimed around 480,000 lives across Mexico since 2006. Hundreds of graves have been discovered across the country. One of the largest mass graves in Mexico was reported in 2017 when more than 250 skulls were found in what appears to be a drug cartel mass burial ground on the outskirts of the city of Veracruz. More recently, in January, at least 56 bodies were discovered in unmarked mass graves in northern Mexico, not far from the U.S. border. The month before that, Mexican authorities discovered 12 bodies buried in clandestine graves in Mexico's northern Chihuahua state. Another 12 bodies were also found in several graves about two hours from Ciudad Juarez, which lies across the border from El Paso, Texas. Hegseth slams Iran strikes initial assessment that contradicts Trump's take Young Cuban girl asks Trump to lift travel ban stopping her from joining mom in U.S. Watch: Fiery meteorite seen above Georgia and South Carolina
CBS News
27-06-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Bodies of 34 people unearthed during construction work in Mexican region wracked by cartel violence
Why Trump is pushing military help for Mexico to help fight cartels Why Trump is pushing military help for Mexico Why Trump is pushing military help for Mexico Mexican authorities discovered the bodies of 34 people in a mass grave in a western region wracked by cartel violence, the state prosecutor's office said Thursday. The remains were found during construction work in Zapopan in Jalisco state, home to one of the country's most powerful drug cartels, prosecutor Salvador Gonzalez told a news conference. Ground-penetrating radar and cadaver dogs were used to search for bodies following the initial discovery in February, he said. Criminal groups in the Latin American nation often bury their victims in unmarked graves, or incinerate them to leave no trace. Jalisco is one of the Mexican regions worst affected by a missing persons crisis that has seen more than 127,000 people vanish. The state is a stronghold of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of the drug trafficking groups classified by President Donald Trump's administration as a terrorist organization. The Jalisco cartel has been accused of using fake job advertisements to lure new members and of torturing and killing recruits who resist. In March, a group of people looking for missing relatives found charred bones, shoes and clothing at a suspected training ground for the cartel. The cartel is led by Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, who is better known as "El Mencho." Washington has offered a $15 million reward for information leading to his capture. Criminal violence has claimed around 480,000 lives across Mexico since 2006. Hundreds of graves have been discovered across the country. One of the largest mass graves in Mexico was reported in 2017 when more than 250 skulls were found in what appears to be a drug cartel mass burial ground on the outskirts of the city of Veracruz. More recently, in January, at least 56 bodies were discovered in unmarked mass graves in northern Mexico, not far from the U.S. border. The month before that, Mexican authorities discovered 12 bodies buried in clandestine graves in Mexico's northern Chihuahua state. Another 12 bodies were also found in several graves about two hours from Ciudad Juarez, which lies across the border from El Paso, Texas.
Scoop
23-06-2025
- Scoop
Sanctioning CJNG Leaders As Specially Designated Global Terrorists
June 18, 2025 Today, the United States is sanctioning five Mexico-based leaders of Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), a ruthless and violent cartel responsible for trafficking fentanyl, methamphetamine, cocaine, and other illicit drugs into the United States. Today's action includes the designation of CJNG's notorious leader, Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, aka 'El Mencho,' as well as Audias Flores Silva, who controls clandestine laboratories used to produce methamphetamine and other illegal drugs trafficked to the United States. The Department of State's Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs, through its Narcotics Rewards Program, is offering a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Oseguera and a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Flores. Additionally, the United States is designating a CJNG commander who was identified as the prime suspect in the recent murder of a Mexican influencer during a social media live stream. This action follows the recent designation of CJNG as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) and Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT). The United States is committed to disrupting the illicit manufacture and trafficking of fentanyl, a leading cause of death among people aged 18 to 49 in the United States, as well as associated violence. Today's action is being taken pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 14059 and 13224, as amended.
CBS News
20-06-2025
- CBS News
Brother-in-law of wanted cartel kingpin "El Mencho" sentenced to 30 years in U.S. prison
Why Trump is pushing military help for Mexico to help fight cartels The brother-in-law of the fugitive Jalisco New Generation boss known as "El Mencho" was sentenced Friday to 30 years in U.S. federal prison following his 2017 arrest at a beach resort in Brazil while vacationing with his family under a fake name. José González Valencia, 49, was sentenced in a federal court in Washington, D.C. Prosecutors said that for years he orchestrated a prolific drug trafficking operation, using a semi-submersible and other methods to avoid detection, and provided weapons to one of Mexico's most powerful cartels. González Valencia, known as "Chepa," along with his two brothers, led a group called "Los Cuinis" that financed the drug trafficking operations of Jalisco New Generation, or CJNG. The violent CJNG was one of eight cartels that were designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations by the Trump administration in February. González Valencia's brother-in-law is CJNG leader Nemesio Rubén "El Mencho" Oseguera Cervantes, who for years has been sought by the U.S. government. The State Department also announced Wednesday that it was sanctioning five CJNG leaders, including "El Mencho," as specially designated global terrorists. Also sanctioned this week was CJNG regional commander Audias Flores Silva, who the State Department said "controls clandestine laboratories used to produce methamphetamine and other illegal drugs trafficked to the United States." Sanctioned as well was CJNG commander Ricardo Ruiz Velasco, who is the prime suspect in the shooting death last month of 23-year-old Mexican influencer Valeria Márquez during a livestream. Velasco and Márquez were believed to be in a romantic relationship, the State Department said. The State Department is offering a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to the arrest of "El Mencho," and up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest of Silva. FILE - The letters "CJNG" for the group's formal name, Jalisco New Generation Cartel, covers the facade of an abandoned home in El Limoncito, in the Michoacan state of Mexico, Oct. 30, 2021. Eduardo Verdugo / AP Meanwhile, El Mencho's son-in-law, Cristian Fernando Gutiérrez Ochoa, appeared in the same courtroom earlier Friday to plead guilty in a separate case to a money laundering conspiracy charge. Gutierrez Ochoa was arrested toward the end of the Biden administration last year in California, where authorities have said he was living under a bogus name after faking his own death and fleeing Mexico. Together, the prosecutions reflect the U.S. government's efforts to weaken the brutal Jalisco New Generation cartel that's responsible for importing staggering amounts of cocaine, methamphetamine and fentanyl into the United States — and track down its elusive leader, El Mencho. The Trump administration has sought to turn up the pressure on CJNG and other cartels with the Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) designation, which gives authorities new tools to prosecute those associated with cartels. "You can't totally prosecute your way out of the cartel problem, but you can make an actual impact by letting people know that we're going to be enforcing this and showing that Mexico is being cooperative with us and then ultimately trying to get high-level targets to sort of set the organization back," Matthew Galeotti, who leads the Justice Department's criminal division, said in an interview with The Associated Press. President Trump's Justice Department has declared dismantling CJNG and other cartels a top priority, and Galeotti said the U.S. in recent months has seen increased cooperation from Mexican officials. In February, Mexico sent 29 cartel figures — including drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero, who was behind the killing of a U.S. DEA agent in 1985 — to the U.S. for prosecution. The Trump administration has already charged a handful of defendants with terrorism offenses since designating CJNG and seven other Latin American crime organizations as FTOs in February. Galeotti said several additional indictments related to CJNG and other cartels remain under seal. "We are taking a division-wide approach to this," Galeotti said. "We've got money laundering prosecutors who are not just focused on the cartels themselves ... but also on financial facilitators. So when we're taking this broad approach ... That's why I think we've had some of the really significant cases that we've had, and we've seen a very significant pipeline." González Valencia pleaded guilty to international cocaine trafficking in 2022. Authorities said he went into hiding in Bolivia in 2015 after leading Los Cuinis alongside his brothers for more than a decade. He was arrested in 2017 under the first Trump administration after traveling to Brazil, and was later extradited to the U.S. Los Cuinis used "air, land, sea and under-the-sea methods" to smuggle drugs bound for the U.S., prosecutors said. In one instance, authorities said González Valencia invested in a shipment of 4,000 kilograms of cocaine — roughly 8,818 pounds — that was packed in a semi-submersible vessel to travel from Colombia to Guatemala. Other methods employed by Los Cuinis include hiding drugs in frozen shark carcasses, prosecutors said. He's also accused of directing the killing of a rival. González Valencia appeared in court wearing an orange jumpsuit and listened to the hearing through an interpreter over headphones. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell sealed part of the hearing, keeping the press and public out of the courtroom while lawyers argued over the sentence. It was not clear why the judge determined it had to be sealed. González Valencia's lawyer declined to comment after the hearing. In the other case, Gutiérrez Ochoa was wanted in Mexico on allegations that he kidnapped two Mexican Navy members in 2021 in the hope of securing the release of El Mencho's wife after she had been arrested by Mexican authorities, prosecutors have said. Authorities have said he faked his own death and fled to the U.S. to avoid Mexican authorities, and that El Mencho told associates he killed Gutiérrez Ochoa for lying. Rosalinda Gonzalez, the wife of El Mencho, was released from Mexican prison in February. El Mencho's son, Rubén Oseguera — known as "El Menchito" — was sentenced in March to life in prison after his conviction in Washington's federal court of conspiring to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine for U.S. importation and using a firearm in a drug conspiracy. In May, a former Mexican federal agent who testified against El Menchito in U.S. federal court was shot dead, along with his wife, about 60 miles outside of Mexico City.
