Unmade Beds, Insomnia Medicines: Inside El Mencho's Final Hiding Place

Mexican drug cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, better known as 'El Mencho', spent his final days at a two-story villa in the exclusive, gated Tapalpa Country Club with one of his lovers. The leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) lost his life due to injuries sustained in an ambush by the military near his house on Sunday.

The luxurious villa features stone walls and a red-tiled roof. The house is located in Tapalpa, known for its ecotourism and weekend homes situated near a lake and golf course, the NY Post reported.

Inside El Mencho's Final Hiding Place

The kitchen counters of El Mencho's final hiding place were covered with cartons of takeout food, pictures obtained by Reuters show. A container of spoiled strawberries rested on the counter alongside a bottle of sriracha sauce, water bottles and milk cartons. A carton each of potatoes and tomatoes was kept on the ground. The fridge was stacked with food.

The cabinets of the villa were filled with personal belongings. The house also had medication for health issues like acid reflux, migraines, insomnia, and fungal infections. Photos show vials of Tationil Plus, believed to boost cellular health, kept next to a dosage schedule in a freezer.

Photo Credit: Reuters

A few neatly folded clothes, a row of skincare products, and perfume were found inside a wardrobe in a large bedroom. Several containers of baby wipes were kept in a lower drawer. Many of the beds were unmade.

El Mencho's villa also had a makeshift altar with Catholic saint figurines, including that of the patron of lost causes, Saint Jude Thaddeus, and Mexico's patroness, the Virgin of Guadalupe.

A Bible passage relating a message of trusting God was written out on a white sheet of paper, the Post reported.

Mexican Defense Secretary General Ricardo Trevilla said that military investigators had identified and started following a trusted associate of one of El Mencho's romantic partners. This person escorted the woman to Tapalpa, Jalisco, on Friday to meet with the cartel leader. The exact location was confirmed by US intelligence, which provided "very important additional information".

When the woman left El Mencho after spending the night, special forces finalised their plans to ambush the leader.

The CJNG leader's death led to violence and chaos in Mexico, with loyalists torching buses and stores, setting up roadblocks and attacking gas stations in retaliation. Security Minister Omar Garcia Harfuch said on Monday that at least 74 people were killed in the operation to take down El Mencho and the subsequent clashes.