US Involvement Behind the Death of Mexican Cartel Boss 'El Mencho'
A new US military-led task force specialising in intelligence gathering on drug cartels reportedly played a role in the Mexican military operation on Sunday (22 February) that killed the drug cartel boss known as “El Mencho”.
The information, as reported by Reuters on Monday (23 February 2026), was disclosed by a US defence official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The Inter-Agency Joint Task Force for Counter-Cartel Operations, involving several US government agencies, was officially launched last month, according to US officials cited by Reuters. Its objective is to map the networks of drug cartel members on both sides of the US-Mexico border.
The US official cited by Reuters did not elaborate on what specific information the US military-led task force may have provided to Mexican authorities. The official emphasised that the raid on El Mencho was a Mexican military operation.
However, a former US official, also cited by Reuters, said Washington had compiled a detailed target package on El Mencho and provided it to the Mexican government for its operation.
The detailed dossier, according to the former US official, included information supplied by US law enforcement and intelligence agencies.
The former official added that El Mencho was at the top, if not the very pinnacle, of the US target list in Mexico.
The Mexican military operation on Sunday killed Nemesio Oseguera, the drug lord commonly known as “El Mencho”. The 60-year-old Oseguera was a former police officer who became the elusive leader of the influential Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).
CJNG is an international criminal organisation widely regarded as one of the most powerful in Mexico. Oseguera, or El Mencho, had evaded capture for years, despite a US reward of up to US$15 million (approximately Rp 252.4 billion) for information leading to his arrest.
The Mexican military raid was originally designed to capture El Mencho in Tapalpa, Jalisco state, which serves as a CJNG stronghold. However, violent resistance from CJNG members triggered a battle with Mexican military personnel.
Mexico’s Ministry of Defence, as reported by Anadolu Agency, stated that four CJNG members were killed at the scene of the battle and three others were critically wounded before dying during air evacuation to Mexico City. One of those killed was identified as El Mencho.
The military operation targeting El Mencho triggered a wave of violence across several regions of Mexico, with cars set ablaze and armed men blocking highways in multiple Mexican states.
In its statement, Mexico’s Ministry of Defence said US authorities had provided “additional information” but did not elaborate on what that information entailed.
According to a Mexican government source with knowledge of the operation, the Mexican government designed and executed the operation without any physical involvement from the US military.