A security operation in Michoacán targeting Ángel Chávez Ponce, alias 'El Camaleón', a regional leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, led to the deaths of two presumed sicarios and narcobloqueos in 16 municipalities. Federal and state authorities deployed ground and air forces in Salvador Escalante, as cartel cells burned at least 15 vehicles on key roads. The blockades were cleared by afternoon, but the search for the criminal leader continues.
The operation began in the cerro de La Cantera in Salvador Escalante, considered a stronghold of Chávez Ponce. There, forces from the state Public Security Secretariat and the Mexican Army killed two men close to the CJNG leader's circle. The action led to reprisals: armed groups burned vehicles on roads in municipalities such as Pátzcuaro, Tzintzuntzan, Quiroga, Morelia, Huaniqueo, Ecuandureo, Zamora, La Piedad, Yurécuaro, Numarán, Vista Hermosa, Ixtlán, Sahuayo, Chavinda, Chilchota, and Tangamandapio.
José Antonio Cruz Medina, the new Michoacán Public Security Secretary, reported that the blockades were cleared around 14:00 hours, though operations continued to locate those responsible. Violence started after 12:00 hours in Salvador Escalante, and Guardia Civil elements worked to restore traffic in areas like Tzintzuntzan, where the road was already reopened, and in Ecuandureo, Ixtlán, Tangamandapio, Zamora, and Numarán.
Ángel Chávez Ponce, from La Huacana, initially joined Los Viagras and Pueblos Unidos before aligning with the CJNG, bolstering its presence in routes around Lago de Pátzcuaro, Uruapan, Salvador Escalante, and Pátzcuaro. Authorities link him to extortion of avocado and lime producers, fees on transporters, and attacks on state forces. In 2024, he was detained for the murder of Pátzcuaro's commissaria, Cristal García Hurtado.
This incident is part of a federal offensive against the CJNG and 12 other cartels in Michoacán, following the murders of Uruapan mayor Carlos Manzo and lime leader Bernardo Bravo. Federal Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch led a meeting in Morelia to define the strategy. Additionally, blockades were reported in Guanajuato on the Pénjamo-La Piedad highway, with vehicles burned.
Governor Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla recently appointed Cruz Medina as part of the Michoacán Peace and Justice Plan, in a reshuffle after Manzo's death. Cruz Medina, with experience in the Federal Police, shares a career trajectory with García Harfuch.
