The death of El Mencho did not end the CJNG, according to Mexico’s security chief. Federal authorities say the cartel has lost strength, but they are still pursuing investigations, arrests, and operations against its structure. The message is clear: one leader’s fall does not automatically dismantle one of Mexico’s most powerful criminal organizations. What comes next will depend on whether the government can turn that blow into a longer-term weakening of the group’s reach.
Harfuch says the cartel lost strength, not its capacity
Mexico’s top security official said the Jalisco New Generation Cartel has been weakened since the death of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as El Mencho, but he made clear the organization remains active. The statement matters because it rejects the idea that the cartel disappeared with its leader. Instead, the federal government is framing the death as a major operational hit inside a broader campaign.
Officials said investigations and enforcement actions are still moving forward, with the goal of reducing violence and dismantling the group’s structure over time. That distinction is important in Mexico, where cartel organizations often survive the fall of a single figure by shifting power to regional leaders, relatives, or allied operators. For readers following security in Mexico, the message is direct: authorities are treating the death of El Mencho as an opening, not a conclusion, and they are signaling that the cartel’s remaining networks still pose a threat.
Why the government is stressing ongoing operations
By emphasizing continued actions against the CJNG, the government is trying to show that the operation against El Mencho was not merely a symbolic victory. Security officials say the broader objective is to reduce violence and weaken the criminal structure behind extortion, kidnappings, homicides, and attacks on authorities. That framing also reflects a hard lesson from past anti-cartel campaigns. Removing a leader can create disruption, but it can also trigger retaliation, internal fights, and new rounds of violence. Recent events have reinforced that concern.
The aftermath of the operation was followed by violent reactions that raised questions about how much operational capacity the cartel still holds. Even so, federal officials are presenting the pressure on the group as sustained and national in scope. For many people living in Mexico, including foreign residents who watch security issues closely, the practical question is no longer whether the cartel survived the loss of its leader. It is whether the state can now keep the group from reorganizing.
The real test is whether the cartel’s structure begins to break
The next stage of this story will depend less on rhetoric and more on what authorities do with the momentum created by El Mencho’s death. A cartel as large as the CJNG does not operate through a single person. It depends on logistics, local alliances, armed cells, money flows, and territory. That is why Harfuch’s comments were notable. He did not claim the organization had been eliminated. He said it had been weakened, while confirming that operations against it continue. That is a more realistic assessment of how criminal groups function in Mexico. It also sets a measurable standard for the government. If arrests, intelligence work, asset seizures, and regional disruptions continue, officials may be able to turn a leadership loss into a deeper institutional blow. If not, the cartel could adapt and continue operating under a new balance of power.
For now, the government’s position is that the fall of El Mencho changed the cartel’s strength, but not the need for an active federal campaign.
