It seems like it was weeks ago when I wrote about Mexico taking out the CJNG head honcho “El Mencho.” Retaliatory violence spiked, even in the touristy areas of Mexico, especially in Western Mexico. For years I’d recommended people not vacation in Mexico. Yes, constantly people say, “Oh the tourist areas are safe.” Yeah, they’re safe until the cartels say otherwise. And folks spending some quality vacation time in some of the nice tourist playgrounds had an extra-spicy experience in late February.
I assume most of those folks caught down there when things went sideways for Mr. Mencho have returned to America or whatever nations they were from.
If you’ve got vacation plans in Mexico for later this year, my advice: cancel them. Forfeit the deposit. Ditto if any of your college-aged family members have spring break plans to go south of the border. You life/their life is worth more than a damn deposit on a vacation to a borderline war zone. Unless war zone vacation is your thing for adrenaline junkies.
Just don’t end up like these folks.
They’re all dead. They probably know it’s coming moments after this picture was taken. Including the leggy babe in the middle trying to make herself small. If they are lucky, the cartel will gift their bodies back (possibly headless) for their families to recover and bury.
“Oh that would never happen to us!” you say?
Sure.
Somehow I doubt these five woke up that morning thinking they would be captured, tied up and executed by drug cartel thugs.
And with the attack on Iran and the Epstein files release and our Attention Deficit Disorder media, the media hasn’t had the time, space or inclination to report on the ongoing violence in Mexico. It’s not getting a whole lot better. Go visit Borderland Beat. They cover this stuff.
On the positive side, a Gulf Cartel cell leader was captured and retaliation attacks against the government have subsided. For the most part. On the downside, not only are cartels fighting over CJNG territory and CJNG factions are fighting to replace their senior leader who the Mexicans whacked.
Here’s my piece from SNW:
Mexico has replaced low-level cartel violence with full-on cartel warfare against police and the military. It’s very much like Apocolypse Now for tourists stranded in their hotels and condos. The open warfare came about after the Mexican military finally took out Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes. He was the head honcho of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), one of the more violent drug cartels south of the Rio Grande.
Mexican troops shot him and a number of his bodyguards in a raid in Tapalpa, Jalisco. Of course, some US intel plus a $15 million bounty didn’t hurt, along with President Trump leaning on Mexico’s corrupt political leadership to get tougher on drug smugglers.
Cartel loyalists didn’t respond with a sternly written letter. They sent their message in the form of burning cars, torched businesses, and highway blockades across at least eight Mexican states (Jalisco, Guanajuato, Michoacán, Colima, Nayarit, Guerrero, Tamaulipas, Zacatecas).
Puerto Vallarta—beloved by snowbirds, spring breakers and Canadians—turned into a ghost town overnight. Why? Because smart folks aren’t leaving their hotel rooms. Flights are canceled en masse with people running from the airports for their lives. The U.S. embassy warned Americans to shelter in place.
Yes, foolish tourists—bless their margarita-soaked hearts. They fell for the “it’s safe here” message of a failed narco state and serious warnings from the American government on the hazards of vacationing in Mexico. One day you’re eating ceviche and guzzling tequila, the next you’re dodging roadblocks manned by heavily armed guys who really don’t like losing their boss. And hoping you or your family don’t become an “accidental” backstop for cartel bullets.
Here’s a guy who’s on the ground there.
BREAKING: The Situation Is Bad In Mexico Right Now…Pray For Us! pic.twitter.com/nBMOpRXFU4
— Dan Dicks (@DanDicksPFT) February 22, 2026
NEW:
Puerto Vallarta, is one of Mexico’s top tourist destinations, welcoming a record-breaking 6.3 million visitors last year.
Today, it’s a war zone following the take out of the Mexican CJNG cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes by the military, reportedly assisted by… pic.twitter.com/Ib7P6XzD8z
— Megatron (@Megatron_ron) February 22, 2026
Here’s more from ZeroHedge:
Mexico’s Ministry of Defense announced on X that a military operation targeting the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) in the Tapalpa area resulted in the death of cartel leader Nemesio “Mencho” Oseguera.
According to the statement, troops came under attack and returned fire “in defense of their integrity,” leaving four CJNG members dead at the incident area and three others critically wounded. The ministry stated that those three later died during a medevac transfer to Mexico City, including Mencho.
During this operation, military personnel were attacked, so in defense of their integrity they repelled the aggression, resulting in four members of the “CJNG” criminal group dead at the scene and three seriously injured, who lost their lives during their transfer via air to Mexico City; among the latter is Ruben “N” (a) Mencho, however, the corresponding authorities will handle the expert activities for their identification.
The ministry also reported that CJNG members had armored vehicles and rocket launchers.In addition to the above, two other members of this criminal organization were detained and various weaponry and armored vehicles were seized, including rocket launchers capable of downing aircraft and destroying armored vehicles.
The statement noted that National Guard and Mexican Army units were being deployed into the Jalisco area, where CJNG operates, to “reinforce security” amid retaliatory unrest this afternoon.