US announces more than $100m in rewards for eight Jalisco cartel leaders

On Wednesday, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche led a news conference touting the new bounties as “ a continuation of our efforts to eliminate cartels that have plagued” the US for “far too long”.

“These sophisticated organisations use violence and fear to maintain control over the importation of deadly narcotics in the United States, including fentanyl, cocaine, meth and other illegal drugs,” Blanche said. “Their actions spread violence and death to our communities.”

Blanche’s rhetoric echoed the broader approach of the Trump administration, which has increasingly made combatting cartels a centrepiece of its national security agenda.

Since taking office for a second term, Trump has pushed his government to relabel criminal organisations in Latin America as “foreign terrorist organisations”.

The administration has used such labels to justify military action against suspected drug smugglers, including through a year-long bombing campaign against small boats in the Caribbean Sea and Eastern Pacific.

“Narco-terrorist organisations like the Cartel Jalisco Nueva Generation are responsible for countless deaths to Americans,” Blanche said on Wednesday, repeating a frequent administration talking point.

CJNG is one of at least eight Mexican criminal networks to be labelled a “foreign terrorist organisation“, alongside groups like the Sinaloa Cartel and the Cartel del Noreste.

CJNG operates in 21 of Mexico’s 32 states and is said to be involved in everything from avocado production to drug smuggling.

The largest reward in Wednesday’s announcement was offered for information leading to the capture of the CJNG’s new leader, Juan Carlos Gonzalez, also known as “Pelon”.

Gonzalez, a dual Mexican and US citizen, is believed to have taken control of the cartel after the death of its former leader, Nemesio Ruben Oseguera Cervantes, also known as “El Mencho”. Gonzalez is his stepson.

His reward was raised by $20m, to reach a total of $25m. Bounties for seven other CJNG leaders ranged from $2m to $15m.

In a statement, the US State Department said the rewards would “complement” newly unsealed criminal charges against five alleged high-ranking members of the cartel.

In addition, the US State Department and Justice Department also announced visa restrictions on 65 individuals accused of business or family ties with cartel members.

The hardline tactics come as Trump presses leaders across Latin America to take a more militarised approach to combatting crime.

In February, Mexico launched a military operation to attack El Mencho’s hideaway in Talpapa, a scenic town in his home state of Jalisco.

The operation resulted in El Mencho being killed in a deadly shootout. At least 73 people died during the raid, including cartel members and security forces.

Members of the cartel retaliated with violence not only in Jalisco but across Mexico, and the power vacuum after El Mencho’s death caused additional infighting within the CJNG.

The raid came as the Trump administration pressured Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum to take more drastic actions against the cartels.

Trump has repeatedly hinted he could take military action in Mexico, describing the country as overrun by cartels.

“We have to eradicate them,” Trump said earlier this year, painting the situation as out of Sheinbaum’s control. “The cartels are running Mexico. We can’t have that.”

He pledged to “do whatever’s necessary to defend our national security”.

Sheinbaum, meanwhile, has warned that any foreign military action on Mexican soil must be approved by the federal government — or it will be considered a violation of Mexican sovereignty.