Was Trump involved in killing of Mexico's drug lord El Mencho? Who was he and what we know about his drug cartel

Mexico's most wanted drug lord El Mencho who was the founder of notorious and most powerful cartel Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) was killed on Feb 22 in an operation by Mexican Army. The US said that it assisted the operation by providing intelligence support. Violence has erupted in the country after his killing as members of his cartel took to streets with guns. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has appealed for calm.

El Mencho's real name was Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes. He was born in Michoacan and was involved in drug trafficking activities since the 1990s. He migrated to the US where he was convicted of conspiracy to distribute heroin in the US district court for the Northern District of California in 1994 and served nearly three years in prison. He returned to Mexico after his release and went on to find CJNG. He was known for training his cartel with military style technique. The US State Department had offered a $15 million reward for his capture.

Under his leadership, the CJNG became a global trafficking powerhouse leading the supply of fentanyl, methamphetamine, and cocaine to the United States. An attempt was made to capture him in 2015 but the operation failed as his cartel members shot down an army helicopter with a rocket launcher.

Reuters reported that a new US-military-led task force specializing in intelligence collection on drug cartels played a role in the Mexican military raid. The Joint Interagency Task Force-Counter Cartel, which involves multiple US government agencies, was formally launched last month with the goal of mapping out networks of drug cartel members on both sides of the US-Mexico border.

In a statement, Trump's press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that the US provided intelligence support to the Mexican government in order to assist with the operation. “El Mencho’ was a was a top target for the Mexican and United States government as one of the top traffickers of fentanyl into our homeland,” Leavitt added in the statement. She also added that US President Trump had designated the Jalisco New Generation Cartel as a Foreign Terrorist Organization last year. "President Trump has been very clear — the United States will ensure narco-terrorists sending deadly drugs to our homeland are forced to face the wrath of justice they have long deserved. The Trump Administration also commends and thanks the Mexican military for their cooperation and successful execution of this operation," the statement added.