Rocket launchers capable of shooting down aircraft were seized during the Mexican military's operation Sunday that killed one of the country's most powerful cartel leaders and one of America's most wanted fugitives, reported The Associated Press.
The killing of Jalisco New Generation Cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera, known as El Mencho, during an attempt to capture him in Jalisco state was the highest-profile blow against cartels since the recapture of former Sinaloa cartel boss Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman a decade ago.
The military also seized armored vehicles, drones, tactical gear, and a large cache of high-powered weapons often used in battlefield scenarios rather than typical enforcement situations.
The cartel in 2015 used a rocket-propelled grenade to shoot down an army helicopter that was pursuing a convoy.
At least 15 people were killed and 19 injured.
El Mencho was 59 years old and originally from the western state of Michoacan. His ties to organized crime went back at least three decades.
In 1994, he was tried for trafficking heroin in the U.S. and sent to prison for three years. Upon returning to Mexico, he quickly rose through the drug trafficking underworld.
Around 2009, he founded the cartel, which became Mexico's fastest-growing criminal organization, moving cocaine, methamphetamines, fentanyl, and migrants to the U.S. and using violence with the use of drones and improvised explosive devices.
It's not clear who will succeed Oseguera.
The Jalisco cartel has a presence in at least 21 of Mexico's 32 states and is active in almost all of America, according to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration. It's also a global organization, and the loss of its leader could be felt well beyond Mexico.
Solange Reyner ✉
Solange Reyner is a writer and editor for Newsmax. She has more than 15 years in the journalism industry reporting and covering news, sports and politics.
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