Mexican security forces on Monday shot dead an alleged cartel leader and one other person after they came under fire in the state of Michoacán, authorities said.
The alleged cartel leader who was killed was Luis Enrique Barragán Chávez, known as “El Güicho” (Wicho) and “R5.”
En Tocumbo, Michoacán, elementos de @Defensamx1 y una aeronave de @SEMAR_MX fueron agredidos con disparos de arma de fuego por integrantes de una célula delictiva.
Durante el operativo, 2 agresores perdieron la vida, entre ellos Luis Enrique “N”, alias “El Güicho” y/o “R5”,… pic.twitter.com/BDaCAlsmFR
— Gabinete de Seguridad de México (@GabSeguridadMX) September 1, 2026
Federal Security Minister Omar García Harfuch said in an X post on Tuesday morning that Barragán had been identified as the leader of the Cártel de Los Reyes (Kings Cartel) and the “main coordinator of extortion against avocado producers” in Michoacán.
According to Mexican authorities and the U.S. Department of State, which was offering a reward of up to US $3 million for information leading to the arrest of Barragán, the Cártel de Los Reyes is a faction of Cárteles Unidos, one of eight Mexican criminal groups designated as foreign terrorist organizations by the U.S. government.
Clash in TocumboThe federal Security Cabinet said on X on Tuesday morning that Mexican Army troops and a Navy plane came under fire on Monday in Tocumbo, a municipality in Michoacán on that state’s border with Jalisco.
According to García Harfuch, the attack occurred as Mexican Army and National Guard troops were carrying out an operation in Tocumbo in coordination with the Michoacán Attorney General’s Office and state police.
The security minister said that the security forces returned fire and “two attackers lost their lives,” including Barragán, who died around two months before his 40th birthday. The other victim wasn’t identified.
García Harfuch and the Security Cabinet noted that Barragán was subject to an arrest warrant for the purpose of extradition to the United States. The Security Cabinet said that authorities seized firearms, magazines and a quad bike during the operation in Tocumbo.
The death of Barragán came a month after another alleged leader of the Cártel de Los Reyes, Alfonso Fernández Magallón, was detained in the Michoacán municipality of Los Reyes. Barragán allegedly succeeded Fernández as the leader of the criminal group.
Barragán, a ‘well-known sicario,’ was wanted in the US on drug and firearms chargesIn a statement published in August 2025, the U.S. State Department noted that an investigation in the United States carried out by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) “led to an indictment charging Barragán in the District of Columbia with drug conspiracy offenses and firearms offenses in July 2023.”
“The indictment was unsealed in July 2025 in conjunction with the announcement of Treasury sanctions against Cárteles Unidos leaders as well as a Narcotics Reward Program (NRP) reward offer for Barragán,” the State Department said.
At the start of its statement, the State Department noted that HSI had identified Barragán as the “chief sicario,” or hitman, of the Cártel de Los Reyes.
It said that HSI had determined that Barragán used the proceeds from the sales of illegal narcotics in the United States to fund the Cárteles Unidos’ “combat operations” against the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, “and the projection of power in their area of control in Michoacán.”
The U.S. Department of State was offering a reward of up to US $3 million for information leading to the arrest of “R5” — real name Luis Enrique Barragán — who headed up the Cártel de Los Reyes faction of Cárteles Unidos in Michoacán. (HSI)“Drug proceeds were used to acquire small arms from the United States, hire local fighters and Colombian mercenaries, and the acquisition of heavy weaponry such as landmines, .50 caliber rifles, up-armored vehicles and the use of bomb-dropping drones,” the State Department said.
“Barragán was at the forefront of those combat efforts, becoming a well-known sicario and combat leader, working closely with other elements of Cárteles Unidos.”
‘A decisive blow to organized crime’Michoacán Governor Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla acknowledged the death of Barragán in an X post on Tuesday morning.
“In Michoacán, there is no room for impunity or for those who threaten the peace of our families and the economy of our producers,” he wrote.
“My full recognition to the National Security Cabinet and our sincere gratitude to President Claudia Sheinbaum for her constant support to our state. Thanks to coordinated intelligence work and operations in Tocumbo between the Ministry of National Defense and the Michoacán Security Ministry we dealt a decisive blow to organized crime by neutralizing Luis Enrique ‘N’, alias ‘El Güicho’ or ‘R5’, the main extortionist of avocado growers in the region and a priority target with an extradition order,” Ramírez wrote.
Combating extortion — a widespread problem in Mexico — is a top priority for the federal government, which launched a national strategy against the crime in July 2025. Criminal groups have long targeted avocado and lime producers in Michoacán, a leading producer of those fruits.
In terms of total homicides, Michoacán ranked as Mexico’s 12th most violent state in the first seven months of 2026. The state recorded 477 murders between January and July, a 41.8% reduction compared to the same period of last year, according to the federal government.
Last November, the federal government began the implementation of “Plan Michoacán for Peace and Justice,” a 57-billion-peso (US $3.35 billion) initiative devised in response to the murder of the mayor of Uruapan on Nov. 1 and general insecurity in the state.
On Tuesday morning, the Security Cabinet said that “within the framework” of that plan, its coordination with state authorities allows criminal structures to be weakened, extortion to be combated and “those who generate violence” to be detained.
Mexico News Daily
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