Inside the Mexican town where cartel boss 'El Mencho' was killed

“I think we should get out of here”. One of the world’s most wanted drug traffickers, the Mexican cartel boss known as “El Mencho”, was killed by security forces - with the operation setting off a wave of violence. Subscribe ► https://www.youtube.com/user/theguardian?sub_confirmation=1 Fires were still burning in the town of Tapalpa four days after the reign of drug lord, whose real name is Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, came to a dramatic end when Mexican special forces – reportedly with the help of CIA intelligence and a US Predator drone – tracked him down. El Mencho’s killing on 22 February caused an immediate outbreak of disorder across the region he ruled, displaying his huge influence across Mexico and other parts of Latin America. The US had offered a $15m (£11m) reward for the capture of El Mencho, who was accused of smuggling huge quantities of cocaine, fentanyl and methamphetamine across its southern border. In a special video dispatch, Guardian correspondent Tom Phillips visited Tapalpa where fierce clashes took place between police and gang members who dug trenches, set fire to shops and lit a forest blaze that was yet to be extinguished days after the drug lord’s death. Read our profile on El Mencho, the former police officer who co-founded an ultraviolent cartel ► https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/feb/23/who-was-el-mencho-drug-cartel-boss-killed-mexico Footage: Emilio Espejel #mexico #elmencho #cartels #cartelviolence #jalisco #drugswar #narcos