The Rise of El Mencho: Mexico's Most Dangerous Cartel Leader

History of Everything

History, Society & Culture, Education

4.7 • 758 Ratings

🗓️ 14 March 2026

⏱️ 35 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Today we uncover the story of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, better known as "El Mencho," the head of the Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG). From his humble beginnings as a humble avocado farmer and police officer in the Mexican state of Jalisco to his current status as Mexico's most wanted and arguably most powerful narco, El Mencho's rise is a masterclass in violence, strategy, and ambition. We trace his path through the Milenio Cartel, his alliance with the Sinaloa Cartel, and the brutal betrayal that led him to form the CJNG. Discover the ruthless tactics that propelled his organization to the top, including public displays of extreme violence, sophisticated military-grade weaponry, and a relentless campaign to eliminate rivals and authorities alike. Watch the ⁠⁠⁠⁠podcast⁠⁠⁠⁠ Fight me at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠war of the barons⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Travel to Croatia with me ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Travel to Greece with me ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Travel to Thailand with me ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Check out our sister podcast the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Mystery of Everything⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Coffee Collab With The Lore Lodge ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠COFFEE⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Bonus episodes as well as ad-free episodes on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Find us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Join us on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Submit your relatives on our ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠website⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	You're listening to an Airwave Media podcast.
0:04.7	Hi, I'm Cassidy.
0:06.5	And I'm April.
0:07.5	And together we are fashion historians, friends, and co-hosts of Dress, the History of Fashion,
0:12.3	a podcast about why the clothes we wear matter throughout history and around the world.
0:17.0	From the cultural and societal to the personal and often political, with each episode we explore the multitude of meanings, quite literally sewn into the clothes we wear.
0:26.1	Please join us in unraveling the hidden histories residing in your closet.
0:30.2	New episodes are available on Wednesdays and our dressed classic episodes re-air each Friday on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever else you listen to your favorite shows.
0:40.3	Hello, my friends, Tucker you here and welcome back to the History of Everything podcast, where we talk about history as we watch the entire world burn around us.
0:48.3	Yeah, I know at that point here it sounds like it's the introduction to one of my geopolitical videos, but that is actually not the case,
0:54.5	though technically speaking, it is kind of related because today we're going to be talking
0:58.4	about the origin and legends inspired by Mexican cartel drug lord El Mentiono, which is literally
1:04.4	one of many related stories that we could possibly do considering everything that has been
1:08.5	happening around the world for the last couple weeks. I swear to God, between Mexico, Ecuador, Iran, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, and so many more
1:16.3	things. I don't think as a geopolitical YouTuber I'm going to ever have anything to run out of,
1:21.0	like content, things I could talk about. It is absolute insanity, I swear, it just really is.
1:26.3	But here anyway, on today's episode, we're going to be going more into the actual history
1:30.5	of El Mentiono himself, while it is that we are going to then be later going and doing a actual
1:36.2	geopolitical episode on what has been going down fully in Mexico with all the cartels.
1:41.3	So, depending upon what channel you're watching on, I ask you to keep your
1:44.8	eyes and ears open and ready to receive that because I swear I'm never going to have a break
1:51.7	over the course of 2026 again. Do I look tired? Yeah, I assure you it's going to get worse.
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from History of Everything, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of History of Everything and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.