Mexican gang boss “El Mencho” was buried in a glittering gold coffin as heavily armed soldiers guarded his funeral.
Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, who led the powerful Jalisco New Generation cartel, was killed when government forces raided his mountain compound during a shoot-out with the Mexican army.
A service was held for the 59-year-old on Monday on the outskirts of the country’s second city, Guadalajara, with enormous floral wreaths and a huge military presence seen at the cemetery.
Dozens of mourners followed the procession, many holding black umbrellas despite the sunny day, and a band played ‘banda’ music, popular in the Sinaloa region.
Wreaths at funerals. Image: Reuters
Mourners used umbrellas to obstruct the view of the casket. Image: Reuters
Cervantes and two of his bodyguards died after being wounded in a military operation by Mexican special forces, with “intelligence” from the US used to track him to his hillside villa hideout.
He later died while being transported to a hospital in Mexico City for treatment. Cervantes suffered bullet wounds to the chest, abdomen and legs, the death certificate said.
His body was returned to his family on Saturday after an autopsy, the Attorney General’s Office said.
The US awarded Cervantes $15m. Image: US State Department.
Mexican authorities have not officially disclosed Cervantes’ burial site for “security reasons,” but an official confirmed his final resting place to The Associated Press.
In recent days security has been heightened around a nearby funeral home, with flower arrangements arriving anonymously. Some were in the shape of a rooster, a possible reference to Cervantes’ nickname – “Lord of the Roosters”.
Cervantes’ death on February 22 sparked violence in 20 states MexicoIt claimed more than 70 lives.
Burned vehicles used in the blockade. Image: Reuters
Cartel followers blocked highways by torching cars and torched businesses, tourists at the shelter in Puerto Vallarta, a popular beach resort in Jalisco, said.
The military operation was launched after growing pressure from Washington on Mexico to intensify its offensive against drug gangs responsible for producing and smuggling fentanyl into the US.
The Jalisco New Generation cartel has been designated as a foreign terrorist organization Trump Administration early last month.
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The tombs of drug lords in Mexico have historically been shrouded in mystery and legend.
Within hours of Cervantes’ death, ballads called narcocorridos circulated about his assassination.
A soldier near a burned vehicle in Cointzio, Michoacán. Image: AP
In Sinaloa, in the neighboring state of Culiacán, is a cemetery known for its luxurious crypts and mausoleums for one-time kingpins such as Ignacio Coronel — an old associate of Cervantes — and Arturo Beltran Leyva.
Another drug lord famously killed twice – Nazario Moreno, leader of the Knights Templar cartel – was claimed dead by authorities in 2010, when he was actually shot in 2014 during a shootout with police.
Sometimes bodies disappear, as in the 2012 theft of the body of Zetas leader Heriberto Lazcano.
