CJNG Turned Houston Into A Hub For Trafficking In The US

With the help of a vast network of local distributors in the United States and two of his trusted men, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, “El Mencho,” who has continuously led the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), transformed Houston, Texas, into a drug distribution hub serving five U.S. states.

A court document obtained by MILENIO details how the network was established six years ago from the Jalisco cartel’s headquarters in Mexico, through an alliance with the Gulf cartel, which has dominated the drug corridor originating in Houston.

U.S. investigations reveal that since 2019, the CJNG has expanded into Houston to significantly increase the distribution of cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, and fentanyl to other Texas cities, such as Galveston, and other locations like New Orleans, Louisiana; Pensacola, Florida; and Atlanta, Georgia. Nashville, Tennessee, and Chicago, Illinois.

El Mencho didn’t arrive alone. In addition to a vast network of local distributors, two of his most trusted men in Mexico built the prolific network that generates millions of dollars in profits and which, to this day, remains at the center of investigations initiated with Operation Rainmaker, by the Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).

The case reviewed by MILENIO focuses on Gerardo Villarreal Martínez, a Mexican-American aligned with the CJNG, arrested last year. He came to the attention of Houston authorities in 2019 after becoming involved in El Mencho’s network, which included 40 other people, most of them based in Texas.

According to the indictment, the CJNG network operates through small distribution cells in the Houston area. Roque Zamudio Mendoza, another of the accused, was in charge of coordinating the distribution of drug shipments arriving from Mexico. Today he is a fugitive. He is presumed to be hiding in Mexico. Fifteen other defendants are also fugitives.

After hundreds of wiretaps of Villarreal’s phone calls, it was determined that he had contact with the highest levels of the cartel. His distributor in Mexico was Itiel Palacios García, alias El Compa Playa, who in turn coordinated directly with El Mencho and one of his main lieutenants, Audias Silva Flores, alias El Jardinero.

The DEA gathered enough evidence to request his arrest for drug trafficking on March 26, 2024.

On April 3 of that year, he appeared in court in Galveston, Texas, for his detention hearing. Agent Emerson testified that Villarreal should be held in pretrial detention pending trial on 12 counts of money laundering and drug trafficking.

During the hearing, it was revealed that the wiretaps led to the seizure of 8 kilograms of cocaine being shipped from Houston to Florida, hidden in the taillights of a car driven by Pete Molina, one of the couriers working with Villarreal, on September 16, 2019.

The anti-drug task force also traced $166,000 and 73 kilograms of cocaine to a safe house operated by Villarreal. This occurred on December 7, 2019, less than three months after the first blow against the local Jalisco Cartel network in Houston. According to DEA agents, at least $120,000 corresponded to the sale of 5 kilograms of cocaine destined for Mexico, specifically Jalisco, and more specifically, Mencho’s wallet.

In 2024, the DEA seized another 6 kilograms linked to Villarreal, based on a tip from a source. The seizure allowed authorities, months later, to build a criminal case against Villarreal and the CJNG network in Houston.

According to Washington, as part of Operation Rainmaker, at least 249 kilograms of cocaine have been seized, representing an estimated $2.9 million in losses for the CJNG, in addition to 550 kilograms of methamphetamine, 34 kilograms of heroin, and 22,600 fentanyl pills.

Source: Milenio