The most wanted drug lord has been dethroned by Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, also known as "El Mencho," a former cop who has a $6.5 million bounty on his head, authorities said last week.
For years Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman was regarded as the world's most-wanted drug kingpin but Cervantes took over the title following Guzman's 2016 arrest and extradition to the U.S.
As Guzman waits in prison for his November trial on murder, money laundering and drug trafficking charges, authorities are now working out how to take down Cervantes and his criminal enterprise, the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación, or Jalisco New Generation cartel, The New York Post noted.
"He's public enemy number one," said Paul Craine, who led the Drug and Enforcement Administration in Mexico when Guzman was captured. "And he's got an army of thousands of bad guys."
Craine said that Cervantes' crime syndicate functioned like a paramilitary organization.
"They are like an iron hand taking control of Jalisco, and have set up car jackings and roadblocks to show their power," he said.
Last week Mexican authorities announced that they would add $1.5 million to the State Department's $5 million reward offer for any information that could lead to Cervantes' arrest, Fox News noted.
Last May authorities managed to nab Cervantes' wife, Rosalinda Gonzalez Valencia, who was working as the cartel's chief accountant, and now they hope to reel in the leader.
"Unfortunately, our country is now faced with a new menace," said DEA Regional Director North and Central Americas Region Matthew G. Donahue, according to WLS-TV.
He described the cartel as a "rapidly expanding brand" in Chicago which was based on violence and bloodshed.
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