The Mexpat Dispatch: Feb. 27
5 (out of 500) security + politics stories from the national conversation
Welcome to The Mexpatriate.
I first got wind of the downfall of El Mencho via my daughter’s 5th grade WhatsApp group chat on Sunday morning. One of the mothers advised us of a “critical situation” in some cities because “an important capo” had been captured. I expected to see that a regional crime boss had been arrested but then…holy shit.
Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes wasn’t just one of the most-wanted criminals in the world, he was a nearly mythical persona; “El Señor de los Gallos” was an elusive, menacing figure who inspired fear, loyalty and even adulation in narco-corridos. His men shot down a military helicopter with a rocket launcher in 2015 after an attempted arrest, and he was the mastermind of the 2020 attack on Omar García Harfuch when he served as the head of police in Mexico City. His Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) has a vast territorial presence, operating somewhat like a franchise—there are an estimated 100 smaller gangs using its “brand”—and it has extensive infiltration in local governments.
Throughout the day, I received “forwarded many times” messages, links to Facebook posts and screenshots—the pastiche of sources we have all become accustomed to parsing when big news stories break. It was soon clear that false information was circulating; as usual, before the truth had time to put its pants on. One officially-worded statement from the Guanajuato government (forwarded via WhatsApp) said a curfew would be implemented statewide by 3 p.m., as word also spread that a fire had been put out at one local store here in San Miguel de Allende and two shopping centers had evacuated and closed. However, the state government never actually implemented a curfew, only issuing stay-in-place recommendations to the population (they also canceled school on Monday).
While there certainly was a coordinated and violent reaction from cartel operatives around the country—250 road blockades in 20 states, over 200 fires set in convenience stores and at least 60 deaths (including 25 National Guard members, 30 sicarios and one bystander, a pregnant woman in Zapopan, Jalisco)—a number of widely-shared videos of buildings on fire and armed men at gas stations and airports have been debunked as either AI-generated or old footage. Every day the internet feels less like a portal to knowledge and more like a high-stakes game of Chinese whispers.
But as bleak as this atomized information landscape looks, there are bright spots: the small, independent outlets delivering on-the-ground reporting and sharp analysis (you’ll find links to recommended reading below).
In today’s dispatch, I share some of my own observations about the national conversation surrounding El Mencho’s death, along with four other security + politics stories.
