US Increases Rewards to $25 Million for CJNG Leader

The United States government has intensified its campaign against the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), increasing the reward for information leading to the capture of its leader, Juan Carlos González, to $25 million. González, a dual U.S. and Mexican citizen and stepson of the late Nemesio Rubén Oseguera Cervantes, is the target of a broader effort by the Trump administration to offer over $100 million in rewards for various CJNG leaders.

Simultaneously, the Department of Justice charged five top cartel members—Julio Alberto Castillo Rodríguez, Gonzalo Mendoza Gaytán, Ricardo Ruiz Velasco, Carlos Andrés Rivera Varela, and Julio César Montero Pinzón—with drug trafficking, firearms offenses, and a timeshare fraud scheme that defrauded American senior citizens of over $400 million. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche added these individuals to the U.S. most-wanted list, with rewards for their arrests ranging from $2 million to $15 million.

These actions follow the February death of previous leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes and reflect a broader U.S. strategy to cripple the organization's leadership through visa restrictions and sanctions. President Donald Trump continues to pressure Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo to intensify cartel crackdowns, including threats of U.S. military action to curb the flow of fentanyl.