The development closely mirrors reporting published earlier this year by Breitbart News Foundation journalists Ildefonso Ortiz and Brandon Darby, who argued that CJNG had quietly transitioned into a three-man leadership structure following El Mencho’s death.
A Violent Cartel Built to Outlive Its Founder
Earlier this year, Mexican special forces tracked El Mencho to a compound in Tapalpa, Jalisco, where authorities launched an operation that ended with the longtime cartel boss being fatally wounded. He reportedly died while being transported to Mexico City.
His death did not immediately weaken CJNG.
Instead, violence exploded across large portions of Mexico as cartel members responded with coordinated attacks. Reports described burning roadblocks, heavily armed gunmen blocking highways, and widespread unrest stretching across numerous states. Dozens of Mexican National Guard personnel were reportedly killed during the chaos as the organization demonstrated that its operational capabilities remained intact.
While much of the media focused primarily on the death of the cartel leader, other reporters continued examining what came next.
Just days after the raid, Breitbart’s Cartel Chronicles team published an investigation arguing that CJNG’s succession plan had already been activated.
Rather than allowing one individual to replace El Mencho, the organization allegedly shifted authority among three powerful figures who collectively managed the cartel’s operations.
According to that reporting, Juan Carlos “Pelón” Valencia Gonzalez, El Mencho’s stepson, emerged as the organization’s top decision-maker.
Working alongside him were Audias “El Jardinero” Flores and Gonzalo “El Sapo” Gaytan, each overseeing separate geographic territories and commanding their own networks inside the organization.
Treasury Targets the New Leadership
Months later, the U.S. Treasury Department unveiled what officials described as its largest sanctions action ever directed at CJNG.
The sweeping action targets more than 50 individuals and businesses allegedly connected to the cartel’s financial operations, leadership network, and money-laundering infrastructure.
Notably, the leadership identified by Treasury closely aligns with the structure previously described by Breitbart’s reporting.
Treasury identifies Pelón as the cartel’s current top leader while also naming El Jardinero and El Sapo as major operational commanders responsible for different regions under CJNG’s control.
Officials say El Jardinero oversees cartel activities across Zacatecas, Guerrero, Michoacán, Nayarit, and Jalisco, while El Sapo directs another significant branch of the organization.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent emphasized that the sanctions are intended to attack the cartel’s financial foundation rather than simply punish individuals.
“President Trump has made it clear that terrorist cartels will be dismantled,” Bessent said.
The sanctions prohibit access to assets within the U.S. financial system and block American individuals and businesses from engaging in transactions involving designated entities.
Following the Money
Treasury’s action extends well beyond cartel leaders themselves.
Federal officials identified dozens of companies they allege were used to move or conceal illicit proceeds generated through criminal enterprises.
Those businesses span a surprisingly broad range of industries, including energy firms, liquor producers, nutritional supplement companies, and even a baby shoe manufacturer that investigators say served as part of a broader laundering network.
Authorities also allege that CJNG generated enormous revenue through fuel theft, fentanyl trafficking, timeshare fraud schemes, and other organized criminal activities operating on both sides of the border.
By targeting those commercial operations, investigators hope to disrupt the financial infrastructure that allows the cartel to sustain its operations despite leadership changes.
Independent Reporting Receives New Validation
The Treasury announcement has drawn attention because it appears to reinforce reporting that surfaced months earlier from independent journalists covering cartel activity on the ground.
While many outlets largely shifted their attention elsewhere after El Mencho’s death, reporters following the organization argued that understanding who inherited operational control would ultimately prove more important than the death of any single leader.
The sanctions suggest federal investigators reached many of the same conclusions after months of tracing financial networks and organizational relationships.
Earlier this year, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt also confirmed that U.S. intelligence assisted Mexico during the operation targeting El Mencho, describing his death as a significant victory against cartel leadership.
However, officials have consistently acknowledged that removing one cartel boss does not automatically dismantle an organization as large and diversified as CJNG.
The latest sanctions reflect that reality by focusing not only on leadership but also on the businesses and financial channels that investigators believe keep the cartel functioning.
Every company designated under the Treasury action now faces severe restrictions within the American financial system, effectively cutting those entities off from lawful transactions involving U.S. persons or institutions.
For an organization deeply involved in fentanyl trafficking and transnational organized crime, officials believe attacking its financial infrastructure could prove just as consequential as eliminating its most recognizable leader.
Whether those measures significantly weaken CJNG remains to be seen, but the latest action makes one point clear: U.S. authorities are increasingly concentrating on dismantling the cartel’s financial network, not merely replacing one headline with another.
