By Rocío Muñoz-Ledo, Uriel Blanco, Mauricio Torres, CNN
(CNN) — Mexican federal forces have arrested one of the alleged commanders of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), Audias Flores Silva, who was considered a possible successor to Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, the CJNG leader who died after a military operation to capture him in February.
At the time of his capture, Flores Silva – aka El Jardinero (“The Gardener”) – had an arrest warrant against him in Mexico and was wanted by the United States for drug-related crimes.
CNN has contacted the Attorney General’s Office of Mexico to find out the details of the current charge against him and whether he has legal representation.
The arrest – which took place alongside the detention of another suspected CJNG operative, known as El Güero Conta – comes at a sensitive moment for Mexico. The country is facing questions about security ahead of the World Cup and US pressure to take tougher action against cartels.
A ‘surgical’ operation to stop El Jardinero
Mexican security forces surrounded a cabin in the Nayarit community of El Mirador – about 20 kilometers (12 miles) north of the tourist city of Puerto Vallarta, in the neighboring state of Jalisco – where Flores Silva was being protected by a security detail made up of around 30 trucks and more than 60 armed men, according to the Mexican Navy.
Flores Silva’s bodyguards dispersed as a diversionary tactic, but he was found while trying to hide in a drainage pipe.
“The operation was carried out surgically, without the need to fire a single shot, with no deaths, injuries, or collateral damage,” the Navy said.
Videos shared on social media by Mexican Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch show aerial shots of the arrest, with helicopters flying over the area during the deployment.
The Mexican Navy indicated that the operation was the result of 19 months of surveillance and involved more than 500 personnel, six helicopters, and intelligence and reconnaissance aircraft.
Raymundo Pedro Morales Ángeles, Mexico’s Secretary of the Navy, said the operation began in October 2024, “when the Mexican Navy activated intelligence efforts focused on a priority target (Flores Silva) linked to one of the country’s main criminal organizations (the CJNG). From that moment on, a discreet and sustained systematic follow-up was carried out, based on field intelligence, intelligence gathering, and international cooperation.”
After more than a year and a half of analysis and preparation work, Mexican authorities tracked down El Jardinero’s full location, his movement patterns, and with whom he interacted.
“Thanks to this analysis, the precise identification of the target was achieved on April 25, 2026,” Morales Ángeles stated. Two days later, federal forces arrested Flores Silva, who was turned over to the Attorney General’s Office that same day.
Who is Flores Silva?
Audias Flores Silva, also known as Gabriel Raigosa Plascencia, had numerous aliases and in addition to El Jardinero was also known as “Commander,” “Bravo 2,” “Audi” and “Boss Killer.”
Born on November 19, 1980, in Michoacán, Mexico, he was once a close collaborator of El Mencho, who for years was the top leader of the CJNG and one of the most wanted drug traffickers in the world, according to the US State Department.
Security analysts saw El Jardinero as a possible successor to the CJNG leadership after El Mencho died following the military operation in Tapalpa, a town located about 120 kilometers southwest of Guadalajara, Jalisco. His death unleashed a wave of violence in 20 states of the country.