U.S. government handout images of “El Mencho”
U.S. government handout images of “El Mencho”
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With the death of Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, “El Mencho,” the Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel faces a looming succession battle, according to Mexico City-based security consultant David Saucedo.
The cartel’s line of succession has been broken, Saucedo told CNN’s Rey Rodriguez. El Mencho’s son, Ruben Oseguera Gonzalez (“El Menchito”), is jailed in the US, leaving only one brother and a stepson, who, Saucedo says, “still lacks influence among other cartel commanders.”
This leadership vacuum could spark an internal war, like the conflict that erupted within the Sinaloa Cartel when facing a power vacuum after the 2024 capture of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada. The Sinaloa conflict was fueled by the lack of a clear family successor, as cartel leadership often follows a dynastic pattern – passing from fathers to sons, siblings, or cousins.
Without an Oseguera family member as a clear successor, now “it’s likely that one of four or five top commanders will emerge as the next leader,” Saucedo said.
Saucedo noted that while a violent succession struggle is possible, the cartel commanders could also negotiate a smooth transition of power.
Among the contenders, Saucedo counted Ricardo Ruiz Velasco (“El Doble R”), Audias Flores (“El Jardinero” or “The Gardener”), another known as “El Sapo,” and a fourth figure – El Mencho’s former head of security – about whom little is known.
A September 2025 report from the US Direction of National Intelligence identified El Sapo as Hugo Mendoza Gaytan, and also mentioned Oseguera’s stepson Juan Carlos Valencia Gonzalez (“El Pelon”) and son-in-law Julio Alberto Castillo Rodriguez (“El Chorro”) as part of the cartel leadership.