El Mencho: Mexican cartel lord buried in golden casket, internet reacts

Infamous Mexican drug lord Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, famously known as El Mencho, was laid to rest on Monday, March 2, in a sombre ceremony attended by his family and close associates.

The 59-year-old founder of the feared Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) died after sustaining serious gunshot wounds during a standoff between his bodyguards and Mexican special forces deployed to capture him on February 22.

Mencho had long ruled Mexico’s drug trade from the shadows, instilling fear and eluding capture multiple times.

At the time of his death, he was Mexico’s most-wanted man, with the US offering a $15 million (KSh 1.9 billion) reward for information leading to his arrest.

El Mencho’s demise triggered widespread retaliatory violence across 20 Mexican states, with cartel members setting vehicles on fire and blockading roads in a show of force.

Inside El Mencho's burial

Reports from Guadalajara revealed a highly controlled, yet colourful funeral at a cemetery in Zapopan within the city.

Mourners, all dressed in black and carrying black umbrellas, accompanied the golden casket, while members of the National Guard were present to prevent further violence.

Truckloads of wreaths were delivered to the cemetery, including one featuring a rooster, a nod to Mencho’s passion for cockfighting.

The funeral procession was accompanied by ranchero music and narcocorridos, songs that glorify the lives of cartel leaders.

Notably, Mencho was laid to rest in a golden casket, a clear symbol of his wealth and influence.

As his gold-coloured coffin arrived at a chapel inside the cemetery grounds, the traditional song El Muchacho Alegre (The Cheerful Boy) was played.

After an hour-long ceremony, mourners, many hiding their faces with masks, followed the coffin to the grave.

While the casket itself was opulent, media reports noted that the burial plot was relatively modest compared with other drug lords, who often have massive mausoleums.