US tightens the net on R1, the CJNG boss implicated in the killings of Uruapan mayor Carlos Manzo and influencer Valeria Márquez
Ramón Álvarez Ayala and his brother Rafael, called R2, have been accused of trafficking cocaine and methamphetamines by a Washington court
Washington is tightening the net on the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). The United States on Wednesday charged Ramón Álvarez Ayala, alias “R1,” a regional commander of the criminal organization who gained notoriety after being linked to the killings of former Uruapan mayor Carlos Manzo and influencer Valeria Márquez, who was fatally shot during a live broadcast. The indictment also names his brother Rafael, known as “R2.” Ramón was arrested in July, while Rafael remains a fugitive from justice.
A federal grand jury in the District of Columbia returned an indictment against Álvarez Ayala, 44, and Rafael, 42, on counts of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine with intent to import into the United States and for possession of a firearm, including a machine gun, in connection with drug trafficking. If convicted, they face life imprisonment. The minimum sentence would be 40 years behind bars.
U.S. authorities allege that R1 and R2 took part in a wide-ranging criminal scheme to manufacture and distribute shipments of cocaine and methamphetamine over nearly two decades, from 2004 until December 2023. The Department of Justice document adds that they used high-caliber weapons for that purpose.
The case against the CJNG bosses comes three weeks after the United States expanded a criminal indictment and offered a $25 million reward for information leading to the arrest or conviction of the cartel’s new leader, Juan Carlos Valencia González, alias “El Pelón” or “R3,” who is the stepson of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, “El Mencho,” who died in February during a military operation in Tapalpa, Jalisco.
The Álvarez Ayala brothers served as regional commanders of the CJNG in Michoacán. R1 was arrested in Mexico in late July and faces extradition proceedings to the United States that could be expedited following this week’s indictment.
“By targeting these regional commanders, we take another step towards fulfilling that commitment to eliminate the scourge of cartels like CJNG,” A. Tysen Duva, deputy assistant attorney general of the Criminal Division at the U.S. Department of Justice, said in a statement. U.S. authorities thanked the Mexican government for securing Ramón Álvarez Ayala’s arrest.
When announcing his capture a month ago, Mexico’s security secretary, Omar García Harfuch, said the capo was under investigation for alleged involvement in arms and drug trafficking as well as extortion and protection rackets. “R1 is identified as the main leader of the Rs, one of the most violent criminal cells linked to the CJNG, with operations in Apatzingán, Uruapan and Morelia, Michoacán, as well as in Jalisco,” the official said in a social media post.
The United States has stepped up its offensive against the CJNG on multiple fronts in recent months: it has offered rewards totaling more than $100 million for information leading to the capture of its top leaders, filed multiple criminal charges and sanctioned individuals and companies in Mexico allegedly involved in laundering the cartel’s multimillion-dollar proceeds. The government alleges that, after El Mencho’s downfall, the criminal group managed to reorganize without an internal conflict.
R1’s high-impact crimes
According to authorities, R1 ordered and financed the assassination of Michoacán mayor Carlos Manzo, who had launched a campaign against organized crime in Uruapan, a contested area beleaguered by several criminal groups, including the CJNG. The mayor even streamed live while accompanying police operations. During Day of the Dead celebrations on November 1, 2025, a gunman shot him dead, a crime that shocked the country. The mayor did not have military protection.
On the femicide of influencer Valeria Márquez, 23, García Harfuch said it was ordered by R1’s son, who had been her partner. The young woman was streaming live from her beauty salon in Zapopan, Jalisco, when she was shot in May of last year.
“R1’s son had a romantic relationship with Valeria, had threatened her on several occasions and everything indicates — this will now be proven — that the son asked his father to carry out the femicide,” García Harfuch said at a press conference.
Francisco Álvarez, R1’s son, denied the accusations in an interview with journalist Luis Chaparro. In a video posted on YouTube he said he felt threatened and claimed he had to flee from authorities over an allegation he considers unjust. He also declined to discuss the criminal activities attributed to his father.
“This is a very serious accusation being made against me, of which I am completely innocent. I have absolutely nothing to do with it,” he said. “She was my partner; there is no reason I would have wanted to do such a thing.”
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