Michoacán woke up this Wednesday to a major deployment of state and federal security forces following a series of road blockades and vehicle burnings across the state. In the morning, President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo said during a press conference that the Security Cabinet was carrying out an operation in the area to arrest “priority targets and individuals generating violence.”
Just a couple of hours later, authorities reported the arrest of nine members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) in the state. Among those arrested were two women, Marisol “N” and Lourdes “N”, identified as the daughter and romantic partner, respectively, of Heraclio Guerrero Martínez, alias “El Tío Lako.”
“El Tío Lako,” a trusted associate of “El Mencho”
A founder of the CJNG, “El Tío Lako” was one of the people closest to and most trusted by Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, “El Mencho,” the head of the criminal group who died in February in Tapalpa, Jalisco.
During the operation in which federal forces located and killed “El Mencho,” Rubén Guerrero Valadez, “El R1,” who was Heraclio Guerrero’s son, was also killed.
Michoacán Attorney General Carlos Torres Piña clarified that this “R1” is different from Ramón Álvarez Ayala, also known as “R1,” who has been identified as the alleged mastermind behind the murder of then-Uruapan mayor Carlos Manzo, who was killed on November 1, 2025.
After Oseguera Cervantes’ death, Heraclio Guerrero, “El Tío Lako,” was considered one of the strongest candidates to succeed his ally as the head of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
The InSight Crime foundation identifies Heraclio Guerrero Martínez as being responsible for a significant portion of the CJNG’s fuel theft operations. According to the organization, this activity has become one of the criminal group’s most profitable businesses and one with the greatest international reach.
Heraclio Guerrero linked to the murder of a Morena candidate
In November 2015, then-Michoacán Attorney General José Martín Godoy reported that seven alleged CJNG members who had been placed at the disposal of authorities were linked to the murder of Enrique Hernández Saucedo, a former Morena candidate for mayor of Yurécuaro.
Heraclio Guerrero Martínez was among those implicated.
According to Martín Godoy, “El Laco”—as he was identified at the time—and his six bodyguards were individuals linked to various criminal acts in the area bordering the state of Jalisco.
Hernández Saucedo, a former leader of the self-defense groups in Yurécuaro, was executed on May 14 by armed individuals during a campaign event held in an area known as Barrio del Diablo in that municipality.
Source: eluniversal
