Mexico arrests alleged major leader of Jalisco cartel

Authorities in Mexico have confirmed the arrest of an alleged leader in the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), one of the country's two main criminal groups.

Key points

• An estimated 134, 000 individuals are believed to be missing throughout Mexico, with Jalisco recording the country's highest numbers of disappearances.
• "This cell is mainly ⁠linked to extortion, drug trafficking, homicide, illegal deprivation of liberty, kidnapping and attacks against authorities, " Mexico's Security Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch remarked.
• Authorities, including those from Mexico's National Intelligence Center, additionally took part in the operation.
• Since the death of the CJNG founder, Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera, in a military operation in February, a number of of its top leaders have been apprehended.
• Alvarez has an outstanding arrest warrant in Mexico for aggravated homicide and another warrant for ⁠extradition to the US, Harfuch additionally stated.

Since of intelligence shared by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)⁠, according to Mexico's Navy, rafael Alvarez, alias "R2", who is suspected of heading CJNG's "Los Rs" cell, was arrested in an operation in the city of Zapopan, in the Guadalajara metropolitan area, on Sunday.

He continued that victims of the group's extortion included "business owners and avocado producers".

Harfuch remarked on X that Alvarez was wounded in a shootout that broke out during the arrest and is receiving medical care.

Authorities, including those from Mexico's National Intelligence Center, additionally took part in the operation. It captured 19 other residents.

Alvarez is linked to the killing of at least 19 individuals, including last year's murder of Carlos Manzo, the popular crime-fighting mayor of Uruapan in Mexico's avocado-producing Michoacan state.

For context, the CJNG, which operates in the states of Jalisco and Michoacan, was designated a "foreign terrorist organisation" by the US administration in 2025 and is known for violent tactics and attacks on authorities.

It competes with the Sinaloa Cartel for drug trafficking into the US.

But there are still reports of kidnapping for ransom in the areas where the cartels are active.

Meanwhile, an estimated 134, 000 individuals are believed to be missing throughout Mexico, with Jalisco recording the country's highest numbers of disappearances.

In short, mexico arrests alleged major leader of Jalisco cartel is the central thread here, and readers can expect follow-up reporting as the picture becomes clearer.