Mexican authorities have dealt two major blows to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) in recent months. In February, the cartel's founder and longtime leader, Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera Cervantes, was killed during a military operation aimed at capturing him.
Two months later, one of El Mencho's closest allies, Audias Flores Silva, also known as "El Jardinero," was arrested in April, leaving Mexico's most powerful cartel reeling after losing two of its top figures within weeks.
According to U.S. authorities, which had offered a $5 million reward for information leading to his arrest or conviction, El Jardinero oversaw clandestine laboratories in Nayarit and Jalisco used to produce methamphetamine and other drugs trafficked into the United States. Now, a few weeks since his arrest, U.S. authorities have expanded the charges against the alleged cartel leader, who was considered El Mencho's right-hand man until his death in February.
On May 14, a federal grand jury in the United States expanded the charges against Flores Silva, adding accusations related to methamphetamine trafficking and conspiracy to launder money. He was originally indicted in August 2020 on charges tied to cocaine and heroin trafficking.
"Audias Flores Silva is charged with trafficking massive amounts of cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine into our country and funneling the profits back to Mexico," Assistant Attorney General A. Tysen Duva of the Justice Department's Criminal Division said in a statement.
According to a statement released by the Justice Department, Flores Silva faces charges including conspiracy to manufacture and distribute cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine for importation into the United States, use of a firearm, including a destructive device, in furtherance of a drug trafficking crime, and conspiracy to commit money laundering. If convicted, he faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life behind bars.
Flores Silva, 45, served as El Mencho's head of security, according to Mexican authorities. Following Oseguera Cervantes' death, El Jardinero emerged as a possible successor to lead the CJNG because of his senior role within the organization.
Authorities say he later took control of cartel operations in the states of Nayarit, Jalisco, Mexico and Zacatecas, overseeing drug production and trafficking operations, as well as clandestine laboratories. He has also been linked to fuel theft and extortion.
The Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control has also sanctioned Flores Silva over his alleged role in a timeshare fraud network that U.S. authorities say operated in part under his control in the state of Nayarit.
When announcing the sanctions, the Treasury Department described the CJNG as "a brutally violent terrorist cartel" that has expanded its revenue streams beyond drug trafficking, including through fraud schemes targeting U.S. citizens.
While the investigation into his case continues, El Jardinero remains in preventive detention at the maximum-security Altiplano prison. The U.S. government has sought his extradition since 2021.
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