In May 2015, the group continued its deadly streak, shooting down a military helicopter on May 1 and launching a wave of violence across Jalisco. Additionally, Mexican officials have previously indicated that the group possesses highly sophisticated armament, including machine guns and grenade launchers were used to conduct the March 2015 attack. The group was also blamed for an attack in March 2015 that killed five federal police. In April 2015, the CJNG killed 15 Mexican police officers during an ambush in Jalisco state, one of the single deadliest attacks on security forces in recent Mexican history. The group claimed authorship of a 2011 massacre of 35 people in Veracruz, and a month later security forces recovered the corpses of around 30 apparent victims of the group. The cartel also made it one of its early missions to battle the Zetas drug trafficking organization in Veracruz state, under the name "Matazetas," or "Zetas Killers," which, depending on the source, is described as either another name for the CJNG or a special cell of the group responsible for assassinations. In the period following the emergence of the CJNG, homicides, forced disappearances and the discoveries of mass graves spiked in Jalisco. The group has been associated with the use of extreme violence. Nemesio Oseguera Ramos, alias "El Mencho," is considered the leader and founder of the CJNG, and his original top operators were Erick Valencia, alias "El 85," and Martin Arzola Ortega, alias "El 53." All of these men were former Milenio Cartel members. The Torcidos became what is now the CJNG, emerging as the successors to the Sinaloan capo's network in the region.
In the power vacuum that followed Nacho's death, these two groups fought for control of drug trafficking in Jalisco. This criminal group moved drug shipments and managed finances for the Sinaloa Cartel, operating primarily in the states of Jalisco and Colima, and later extending into Michoacán and Mexico City.īy the time of Nacho Coronel's death, El Lobo had been captured and the Milenio Cartel had suffered internal divisions, splitting into two factions: "La Resistencia" and another faction referred to as the "Torcidos" ("The Twisted Ones"), because La Resistencia accused them of giving up El Lobo to the authorities. Prior to his death, Coronel gave orders to Óscar Orlando Nava Valencia, alias "El Lobo," the leader of the Milenio Cartel. The CJNG emerged after former Sinaloa Cartel capo Ignacio Coronel, alias "Nacho," was killed by Mexican security forces in July 2010. Despite the capture of certain top leaders, it is now Mexico's foremost criminal threat and appears set to continue expanding. It is known for its aggressive use of violence and its public relations campaigns. The Jalisco Cartel New Generation (Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generación - CJNG) is a criminal group that has evolved as a result of killings, captures and rifts in older cartels.