Cartel Operative 'El Pepe,' Who Led Troops To Capture El Mencho, Arrested In Mexico

An operative of the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generacion who played a key role in the operation that led to the killing of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, "El Mencho," the organization's longtime leader, has been arrested in Mexico.

The man in question is Jose N, known as "El Pepe." He is considered to be one of the main logistics operators of the Jalisco Cartel. "Drugs, weapons, and a vehicle were seized from the detainee," the Mexican Defense Ministry said in a statement.

El Pepe, however, did not help law enforcement track down El Mencho voluntarily. He was tracked down while taking a lover of the drug lord to the compound where he was staying.

Once El Pepe left the premises, officers confirmed that El Mencho stayed there. Forces then moved on to detain him, engaging in a shootout with cartel operatives.

More than a dozen special forces operatives were dropped by helicopter near the compound. El Mencho had hosted a party the night before and his security detail was not on high alert, the LA Times noted in a recent report.

The outlet added that he wasn't able to be constantly on the move and avoid law enforcement because he had a late-stage kidney disease. This meant that he needed dialysis on a daily basis, preventing him from having the same kind of movement as other high-profile fugitives.

These factors, along with the recent arrest of a public official suspected of having ties with the Jalisco Cartel, helped shape the operation. The official provided leads that helped intelligence officials determine the drug lord's potential location.

More recently, Mexican Defense Secretary Ricardo Trevilla Trejo rejected a claim from a cartel operative about El Mencho surrendering before being killed.

Speaking during President Claudia Sheinbaum's daily press conference, Trevilla Trejo recalled that all troops must abide buy a law detailing what is to be considered a rational use of force.

The general recalled that three people died in the operation. "In the woods, where El Mencho was with two members of his escort, he was urged to surrender. He opened fire, killing an officer and the remaining forces, defending their lives, had to use their weapons. He is wounded then," he said.

Trevilla Trejo concluded by noting that forces tried to capture El Mencho alive, but "if people are dying, they have all the right to use weapons to defend themselves. Now, given the criminal's characteristics, it is clear that it was unlikely that he would turn himself in. He had a lot of weaponry on him."