Servando Gómez, the leader of the Knights Templar drug gang, was captured by Mexican authorities at a hot dog stand in Michoacán on Friday morning.
The New York Times reported that Gómez was known as La Tuta (the Teacher) because he was at one time a schoolteacher.
He left that job, however, and over a number of years made his way through the ranks of the notorious drug gang La Familia, known for terrorizing Michoacán with violent kidnappings, extortion, and murder.
After Mexican officials captured and killed a number of La Familia's high-ranking members, it rebranded as Knights Templar.
Many vigilante groups formed in response to the gang, and were particularly focused on the 49-year-old kingpin and the $2 million bounty on his head because he was brazen.
Gómez frequently released video blogs about containing his thoughts on life as a druglord, and sometimes bragged about his connections to corrupt politicians. At one point, he recorded a conversation between himself and the son of the former governor of Michoacán, setting off a firestorm of controversy and consternation among citizens.
NBC News reported that 100,000 people have died in drug-related violence since 2007, when the Mexican government began a crackdown on the cartels. The capture of Gómez is an important mark of success for President Enrique Peña Nieto.
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