0:00
Kaliscoco, Mexico. July 2015.
0:05
A military helicopter circles over dense
0:07
forest, tracking suspected cartel
0:10
activity below. Routine surveillance,
0:13
standard operation. But what happened
0:16
next changed everything the DEA thought
0:19
they knew about Mexican cartels. A
0:22
rocket propelled grenade streaks upward
0:24
from the treeine. Direct hit. The
0:27
helicopter crashes, killing nine people,
0:30
including a federal police officer. This
0:32
wasn't a gang. This wasn't a ragtag
0:34
group of traffickers running from
0:36
authorities. This was a military
0:38
engagement. And the organization behind
0:40
it wasn't hiding in caves or running
0:42
through tunnels. They were openly
0:44
challenging the Mexican government with
0:46
firepower that rivaled the army itself.
0:49
How does a cartel that didn't exist
0:52
before 2010 become what the DEA calls
0:55
the most dangerous criminal organization
0:57
in Mexico? More powerful, more violent,
1:01
and more sophisticated than the Sinaloa
1:03
cartel at its peak. The cartel Kaliscoco
1:07
Nova Generation, known as CJNG,
1:11
now operates in all 32 Mexican states
1:14
and has expanded to Europe, Asia, and
1:17
Australia. Conservative estimates put
1:20
their annual revenue at over $20
1:24
They've deployed armored vehicles,
1:26
militarygrade drones, and coordinated
1:29
attacks that look more like insurgent
1:31
warfare than drug trafficking. When El
1:35
Chapo was arrested in 2016, the world
1:38
assumed the Sinaloa cartel would remain
1:41
dominant. But while everyone was
1:43
watching Sinaloa, CJNG was building an
1:47
empire that would make El Chapo's
1:49
operation look almost old-fashioned by
1:54
This isn't just about drugs anymore.
1:56
This is about a criminal organization
1:59
that studied military tactics, corporate
2:01
expansion strategies, and asymmetric
2:04
warfare to become something Mexico had
2:07
never seen before. So, get ready to dive
2:09
into the story of CJNG, the cartel that
2:13
evolved beyond trafficking into
2:15
something far more dangerous.
2:18
Act one, origins, the teacher's
2:21
apprentice. The truth is, CJNG didn't
2:25
emerge from nowhere. It was built by a
2:28
man who learned from the best and
2:30
understood exactly how the old cartels
2:32
failed. His name is Nsio Osua Cvantes.
2:37
Street name Elmeno. Born in 1966 in
2:42
rural Mituakan, one of Mexico's poorest
2:45
states, Osguera grew up in a world where
2:48
legitimate opportunities were scarce,
2:51
and the drug trade was one of the few
2:53
paths to money and power. By his early
2:57
20s, he'd crossed into California,
3:00
working odd jobs, trying to build
3:02
something. But in 1992, he was arrested
3:06
in San Francisco for heroin
3:08
distribution. Served 3 years, deported
3:12
back to Mexico in 1995.
3:15
According to investigators, this prison
3:18
stint was pivotal, he learned English,
3:22
he studied, and most importantly, he
3:25
made connections with Mexican
3:27
traffickers who were operating on both
3:30
sides of the border. When he returned to
3:32
Mexico, he didn't go back to Mitawakan.
3:36
Instead, he gravitated to Halisco and
3:39
connected with one of the most powerful
3:41
organizations at the time, the
3:43
Millennial Cartel. Yet, the Millennial
3:46
Cartel was already in decline.
3:49
Leadership was fractured. Arrests were
3:52
increasing. The old model of regional
3:55
drug trafficking was being disrupted by
3:58
the Mexican government's so-called war
4:00
on drugs launched by President Felipe
4:06
Oiggua saw the chaos not as a threat but
4:12
When the millennial cartel splintered in
4:14
the late 2000s, Oguera aligned himself
4:18
with one of the fragments that would
4:20
eventually become the Sinaloa cartel's
4:23
armed wing in Halisco, a group called
4:26
Los Matazetas or the Zeta Killers. But
4:31
here's where the Zetas were originally
4:33
an elite special forces unit from the
4:35
Mexican military who defected to work
4:38
for the Gulf cartel. They brought
4:41
military discipline, advanced tactics,
4:43
and extreme measures to the drug trade.
4:47
By 2010, they had broken away from the
4:49
Gulf cartel and were expanding
4:52
aggressively across Mexico. Loss
4:55
Matazetas, as the name suggests, was
4:58
formed specifically to fight them. It
5:01
was funded by the Sinoa cartel to
5:03
protect their territory and Haliscoco
5:05
from Zeta expansion. Oguera became one
5:08
of their key leaders. But he wasn't just
5:09
a fighter. He was a strategist.
5:12
According to intercepted communications
5:13
analyzed by Mexican intelligence, Osigua
5:16
studied how the Zetas operated. He
5:18
observed their recruitment, their
5:20
military structure, their use of fear
5:22
and spectacle, and he took notes.
5:25
However, there was a problem. By 2011,
5:29
tensions between Los Matazetus and their
5:32
Seninoa benefactors began to fracture.
5:35
Osguera and his core leadership wanted
5:38
independence. They wanted to control
5:41
their own trafficking routes, their own
5:43
product, their own profits. Therefore,
5:46
they made a decision that would reshape
5:49
the entire Mexican underworld. In 2011,
5:53
they broke away completely, rebranded,
5:56
and announced themselves to the world
5:58
with a name that was both a declaration
6:01
and a warning. Cartel Yaliscoco Nova
6:04
Generation. The new generation Yalisco
6:07
cartel. The message was clear. This
6:10
wasn't the old guard. This was something
6:15
Act two. The rise. The new model.
6:19
Between 2011 and 2015,
6:22
CJNG did something no other cartel had
6:25
done. They expanded at a speed that
6:28
shocked law enforcement on both sides of
6:30
the border. how they didn't just traffic
6:33
drugs. They built a vertically
6:35
integrated criminal enterprise.
6:38
CJNG controlled the production of
6:40
methamphetamine and synthetic opioids in
6:44
Clanderstein labs across Haliscoco and
6:46
Mitawakan. They didn't rely on Colombian
6:50
cocaine suppliers like the old cartels.
6:52
They manufactured their own product,
6:55
cutting out middlemen and maximizing
6:57
profit. According to DEA reports, CJNG
7:02
flooded the US market with high purity
7:09
Between 2011 and 2016,
7:12
meth seizures at the US Mexico border
7:15
increased by over 250%.
7:18
Much of it traced back to CJNG
7:20
operations, but production was only part
7:24
of the model. Distribution was the key.
7:27
Unlike traditional cartels that relied
7:30
on a few major smuggling corridors, CJNG
7:34
diversified. They used trucks, tunnels,
7:37
drones, fishing boats, and even
7:40
catapults to move product across the
7:42
border. They established cells in major
7:45
US cities, Los Angeles, New York,
7:47
Atlanta, Chicago, operating like
7:50
franchises with local leadership
7:52
reporting back to Halisco. By 2014, the
7:56
DEA identified CJNG operations in over a
8:00
dozen US states. By 2018, that number
8:04
had expanded to over 35 states. Yet,
8:08
expansion created conflict. Every
8:11
territory CJNG entered was already
8:13
controlled by someone else. Local gangs,
8:17
regional cartels, Cena affiliates. That
8:21
meant war. Think you know what happens
8:23
next? Keep watching. In 2015, CJNG made
8:28
a series of coordinated attacks across
8:31
Haliscoco that demonstrated a level of
8:33
organization and firepower Mexico had
8:37
rarely seen outside actual military
8:39
operations. They ambushed police
8:42
convoys, blockaded highways with burning
8:45
vehicles, and engaged in open firefights
8:48
in major cities. The helicopter attack
8:51
in July 2015 wasn't just violence. It
8:55
was a message. We have militarygrade
8:58
weapons, trained personnel, and we're
9:00
not afraid to use them against the
9:01
government. According to military
9:03
analysts who later reviewed footage and
9:05
tactics, CJNG had clearly trained
9:08
operatives in small unit tactics. They
9:10
moved with precision, communicated
9:12
effectively, and used terrain to their
9:14
advantage. Where did this training come
9:17
from? Investigators believe CJNG
9:20
recruited former Mexican military and
9:22
police, offering salaries that far
9:25
exceeded government pay. Some estimates
9:28
suggest CJNG foot soldiers earned
9:31
between $800 to $1,500
9:35
per month, double or triple what a
9:38
Mexican police officer made.
9:40
Nevertheless, money wasn't the only
9:42
tool. Fear was. CJNG became known for
9:47
public displays meant to terrorize
9:50
rivals and intimidate communities.
9:53
Without going into graphic detail, they
9:56
used psychological warfare to establish
9:59
dominance in contested regions, ensuring
10:02
that local populations wouldn't
10:04
cooperate with authorities or rival
10:06
groups. By 2016, when El Chapo was
10:10
captured and extradited to the United
10:12
States, many assumed the Sinaloa cartel
10:16
would collapse or fragment. Instead,
10:19
something else happened. CJNG saw an
10:22
opening. They launched aggressive
10:24
campaigns to seize Sinaloa controlled
10:27
territory, Tijana, Baja California,
10:30
parts of Sinaloa itself. The conflict
10:34
escalated into what some analysts called
10:36
a cartel war that has claimed tens of
10:39
thousands of lives across Mexico.
10:42
However, CJNG didn't just fight with
10:45
violence. They fought with innovation.
10:48
In 2017, Mexican authorities began
10:51
seizing CJNG drones rigged to carry
10:55
explosives. not hobby drones,
10:57
military-style UAVs capable of
11:00
delivering payloads with precision. This
11:03
was technology previously associated
11:05
with insurgent groups in the Middle
11:07
East, now adapted for cartel warfare. In
11:12
2020, a convoy of over 40 CJNG vehicles,
11:17
many armored, some mounted with heavy
11:19
weapons, was filmed rolling through
11:22
Kalisco in a show of force. The video
11:25
went viral. It looked less like a
11:28
criminal gang and more like a
11:29
paramilitary column. Mexican and US
11:32
authorities were forced to confront an
11:35
uncomfortable reality. CJNG wasn't just
11:39
a cartel. They were a hybrid
11:41
organization, part criminal enterprise,
11:44
part insurgent force. The scale of their
11:47
operations was staggering. By 2020, the
11:51
DEA estimated CJNG was responsible for
11:55
trafficking over 50 tons of
11:56
methamphetamine and cocaine into the
12:00
United States annually, generating
12:02
revenues in the tens of billions. Still,
12:05
there was a weakness. Rapid expansion
12:08
meant overreach. CJNG's aggressive
12:12
tactics created enemies on all sides.
12:15
the Sinaloa cartel, the Gulf cartel,
12:18
Lozeta's remnants, smaller regional
12:21
groups, even splinter factions within
12:23
CJNG itself began to break away, leading
12:27
to internal conflict. And then there was
12:29
Elmeno himself. Despite being one of the
12:33
most wanted men in the world, Mexican
12:35
and US authorities offered a combined
12:38
$10 million reward for his capture, he
12:41
remained free. Reports of his location
12:44
ranged from deep in the mountains of
12:47
Halisco to rumors he'd fled to South
12:49
America. But the truth is even stranger.
12:54
Act three, the fall or the evolution. In
12:58
2020, rumors began circulating that
13:01
Elmeno was seriously ill. Kidney
13:05
Some reports claimed he was already dead
13:08
and CJNG leadership was hiding it to
13:11
avoid internal collapse. Mexican
13:14
authorities investigated. Intercepted
13:17
communications suggested there might be
13:19
truth to the health rumors. Yet no body
13:22
was ever found. No confirmation.
13:26
To this day, Elmeno's status remains one
13:29
of the biggest mysteries in the drug
13:31
war. If he's alive, he's maintained
13:34
operational security unlike any cartel
13:37
leader before him. No confirmed
13:40
photographs in over a decade. No
13:43
verified sightings, just orders that
13:46
continue to flow through the
13:48
organization. If he's dead, CJNG has
13:52
managed to continue operating at full
13:54
capacity without him, which might be
13:57
even more troubling. What happened next
13:59
shocked even seasoned investigators. In
14:05
CJNG began a strategic pivot. Instead of
14:10
overt military confrontations, they
14:12
shifted toward corruption and
14:16
Mexican authorities arrested dozens of
14:18
local officials, police commanders, and
14:21
even military officers who were on
14:23
CJNG's payroll. In one case, the police
14:27
chief of a major city in Halisco was
14:30
found to be coordinating directly with
14:32
CJNG leadership, providing intelligence
14:35
on raids, warning of operations, even
14:38
supplying weapons. Revelation exposed
14:40
just how deeply CJNG had embedded itself
14:42
into Mexico's institutions. Therefore,
14:44
law enforcement faced a paradox. The
14:46
more they targeted CJNG's military
14:48
operations, the more CJNG adapted by
14:51
going deeper into the political and
14:52
economic system. By 2023, CJNG's
14:56
international expansion had reached
14:58
alarming levels. European authorities
15:01
dismantled CJNG distribution cells in
15:04
Spain, Italy, and Germany. Australian
15:07
police seized massive meth shipments
15:10
traced to CJNG labs in Mexico. Even in
15:14
Asia, investigators found evidence of
15:16
CJNG partnering with Chinese chemical
15:19
suppliers to obtain precursor chemicals
15:22
for synthetic drug production. This
15:25
wasn't a regional cartel anymore. This
15:28
was a global criminal network. Yet,
15:30
despite international pressure, arrests
15:33
of mid-level operators, and billions
15:35
spent on counter narcotics operations,
15:38
CJNG has not collapsed. Why? Some
15:43
experts argue it's because CJNG learned
15:46
from the failures of previous cartels.
15:49
They decentralized leadership. They
15:52
diversified revenue streams beyond
15:54
drugs, extortion, human smuggling,
15:56
illegal mining, fuel theft. They created
16:00
redundancies so that losing one leader
16:03
or one territory didn't the
16:07
Others believe it's simpler. As long as
16:10
there's demand for drugs in the United
16:12
States and Europe, there will be
16:14
organizations willing to supply them.
16:17
CJNG just happens to be the most
16:19
efficient at it right now. But the
16:22
question remains, what happens next? In
16:26
2024, the Mexican government launched
16:29
Operation Halisco, a coordinated effort
16:32
involving thousands of troops aimed
16:34
specifically at dismantling CJNG.
16:38
Early results showed some success.
16:41
Arrests, lab seizures, disrupted supply
16:45
Nevertheless, history suggests this
16:48
won't end CJNG. It will force them to
16:51
adapt again. The legacy of CJNG is
16:55
complicated. They represent the
16:57
evolution of organized crime in the 21st
17:00
century. more sophisticated, more
17:03
violent, more integrated into the global
17:06
economy than any cartel before them.
17:09
They've turned drug trafficking into a
17:12
modern enterprise that uses corporate
17:14
strategies, military tactics, and
17:17
technological innovation.
17:19
They've become a case study in how
17:21
criminal organizations adapt to
17:23
pressure, exploit weaknesses in
17:25
governance, and thrive in environments
17:28
of corruption and inequality. Yet,
17:31
they've also left behind a trail of
17:33
devastation, tens of thousands dead,
17:37
communities terrorized, institutions
17:39
corrupted, families destroyed. The CJNG
17:43
story isn't over. Eleno may be gone,
17:47
incapacitated, or still in command. But
17:50
the organization he built continues. And
17:53
here's the uncomfortable truth. Even if
17:56
CJNG is dismantled tomorrow, the model
17:59
they created will likely inspire the
18:02
next generation of cartels. The tactics,
18:05
the structure, the innovations, they're
18:08
now part of the playbook. So, what do
18:10
you think? Is CJNG truly more dangerous
18:14
than the Sinaloa cartel at its peak? Or
18:17
is this just the latest chapter in an
18:20
endless cycle? Can any law enforcement
18:23
operation truly dismantle an
18:25
organization this decentralized and
18:28
adaptive? And the biggest mystery, is
18:30
Eleno alive, directing operations from
18:34
the shadows? Or has CJNG evolved beyond
18:38
needing any single leader? The DEA still
18:41
lists him as one of the most wanted
18:44
fugitives in the world. Mexican
18:46
authorities continue the search, but
18:48
every month that passes without capture
18:51
deepens the question. CJNG called
18:54
themselves the new generation. They
18:56
weren't exaggerating. Drop your theory
18:58
in the comments. I read every single
19:01
one. And if you want to understand the
19:03
criminal networks shaping our world,
19:05
subscribe because the next investigation
