Background on Key Figures and Relevance
Rubén Oseguera González, known as “El Menchito,” is the son of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). El Menchito was found guilty of multiple drug trafficking and organized crime offenses, leading to his life sentence in the federal maximum-security prison in Florence, Colorado.
Espionage Revelations by DEA Agent Matthew Allen
During a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, DEA Special Agent Matthew Allen disclosed that CJNG operatives directly spied on DEA agents and informants during El Menchito’s trial in Washington D.C.
- Retaliation: Following El Menchito’s arrest and trial, the CJNG retaliated by killing the daughter of a cooperating witness and a Mexican army soldier, as well as injuring the spouse of another collaborator.
- Threat to Agents and Families: Allen emphasized that these acts of espionage pose not only operational challenges but also direct threats to the lives of agents and their families.
- Cartel Operations: Allen, who heads the DEA field division in Los Angeles, described Mexican cartels—specifically CJNG and Sinaloa Cartel—as “foreign criminal empires with battlefield tactics, corporate logistics, and global supply chains.”
Allen provided examples of cartel infiltration, including the discovery of a CJNG storage facility in downtown Los Angeles adorned with a mural of the cartel’s leader, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes.
In another operation, DEA agents found El Menchito’s daughter and her spouse living in a gated community in Riverside, California, near the local police chief. During a search warrant execution, they seized numerous Rolex watches, designer shoes, and over a million dollars in cash among other valuable items worth more than $2.5 million.
Cartels Exploiting the US Immigration System
Allen also highlighted that cartels are leveraging the US immigration system to strengthen their operations. They recruit from migrant populations, coerce through fear and debt, and engage in human and power trafficking.
He stressed that the border crisis cannot be separated from the advancement of transnational criminal organizations.
El Menchito’s Trial and Sentencing
El Menchito’s trial concluded on September 20, 2024, with his conviction for multiple narcotráfico and organized crime offenses. He was transferred to the US in February 2020, and the trial formally began four years later.
Following his guilty verdict, Oseguera González was sent to the federal maximum-security prison in Florence, Colorado, where he will serve his life sentence.
Viceroy’s Plea Deal Deadline
Meanwhile, Judge Jean Marie Azrack of the Eastern District Court of New York granted Vicente Carrillo Fuentes, alias “Viceroy,” a three-month deadline to reach a guilty plea agreement with the US attorney’s office.
The former leader of the Juárez Cartel was extradited by the Mexican government in February along with other narco bosses to the US under pressure from the Trump administration.
