Mexico Captures Key Cartel Figure, Tightening Pressure on Jalisco New Generation Cartel
Mexican military forces have captured a senior ლიდერ of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), marking another significant удар against one of the country’s most powerful criminal groups.
Authorities said Audias Flores Silva, also known as “El Jardinero” (“The Gardener”), was arrested Monday in the northwestern state of Nayarit. He had been considered a संभावित successor within the cartel’s leadership and was wanted by the United States, which had offered a $5 million reward for information leading to his capture.
According to Mexican officials, Flores Silva was found hiding in a roadside ditch near the community of El Mirador. His arrest was carried out without any reported casualties.
Flores Silva had close ties to Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, widely known as “El Mencho,” the cartel’s longtime leader who was killed in a large-scale military operation in February. His death triggered a موجة of cartel violence across several regions, including arson attacks on businesses, vehicle burnings and road blockades that left more than 70 people dead, among them 25 National Guard members.
Despite the हिंसा that followed, the killing of Oseguera Cervantes was viewed as a major win for the administration of Claudia Sheinbaum, which has intensified efforts to dismantle powerful cartels. The crackdown also comes amid pressure from Donald Trump, who has taken a hardline stance on drug trafficking and last year designated the CJNG and other groups as foreign terrorist organizations.
Security officials say Flores Silva played a ключевая role within the cartel, overseeing security operations and coordinating drug production and trafficking networks across multiple states, including Nayarit, Jalisco, Mexico State and Zacatecas.
Reports from local media in Nayarit indicated that the arrest was followed by retaliatory violence, with several vehicles and businesses set ablaze.
U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson welcomed the development, calling the arrest an “important step” in efforts to combat criminal networks involved in fentanyl trafficking.
