El Mencho’s violent gangs have reportedly used extreme cannibalism and flamethrower attacks to wreak havoc in the country as the drug kingpin’s death sparks renewed chaos. The leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), real name Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, was killed on Sunday in a joint US-Mexican operation in Tapalpa. 

While he was in charge, his hitmen tortured a half-naked man before standing on his head, cutting his chest open with a knife, and eating his organs. A cartel member said during the 2020 incident: “So you can see that’s how we Jalisco people are… we’re going to exterminate you all.”

In 2011, the gang tortured and murdered 35 people, dumping their bodies in the streets during rush hour.

Four years later, they executed a man and his young son by setting off sticks of dynamite taped to their bodies, laughing as they filmed the sick scene.

In another brutal clip from November last year, a man believed to be from the rival MF Cartel can be seen tied to a tree, while another man prepares a flamethrower and fires it at him.

A DEA agent who investigated CJNG told Rolling Stone: “This is ISIS stuff. The manner in which they kill people, the sheer numbers – it’s unparalleled even in Mexico.”

Senior cartel analyst Scott Stewart added: “We’ve seen it become very bloody, and a lot of people attribute that to El Mencho himself. Wherever they try to muscle in, it creates bodies.”

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Mexico’s defence ministry said El Mencho died from injuries sustained during the operation while being transferred by air.

Several armoured vehicles and weapons, including rocket launchers, were reportedly seized, while three soldiers were wounded and taken to hospital.

Authorities believe members of the CJNG launched retaliatory attacks across the region following confirmation of his death.

Throughout Sunday, vehicles were set ablaze and gunmen were reportedly sighted on streets across Jalisco as blockades brought parts of the state to a standstill.

Airlines warned passengers to stay away from the airport amid what officials described as an “extremely volatile” situation, while federal forces and the National Guard were deployed to secure the area.