Arrest of R1 Exposes Expanded CJNG Command Structure

Following the deaths of Mayor Carlos Manzo and influencer Valeria Márquez, Mexican authorities have secured the arrest of their lead suspect, Ramón Álvarez Ayala, known as “R1,” the alleged head of the R‑cell within Mexico’s CJNG.

R1 was detained in July and faces prosecution for the November 2025 killing of Manzo, former mayor of Uruapan in Michoacán, carried out in retaliation for Manzo’s public campaigns against organized crime. Authorities also allege that R1’s son, Francisco Álvarez, ordered his father to assassinate Márquez, a 23‑year‑old influencer who was fatally shot while filing a TikTok livestream in Zapopan, Jalisco, in May 2025.

According to investigators, R1 operated a violent cell within the Jalisco Cartel New Generation (CJNG), called Los Rs, jointly with another “R” – Rafael Álvarez Ayala, alias “R2.”

Since R1’s capture, Mexican officials report that R2 has assumed command of the Los Rs cell, a network active in Michoacán and Jalisco.

R1’s detention connects two high‑profile murders directly to the senior leadership of the CJNG, illuminating a broader web of commanders bearing the “R” moniker who coordinate extensive armed enforcement and territorial control under the direction of both Mexico’s and the United States’ authorities. These operatives have become primary targets as both nations seek to disrupt CJNG after the death of former boss Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes (“El Mencho”).

Beyond Mexico’s prosecution of R1, an August 2026 indictment filed by the U.S. Department of Justice listed both R1 and R2 as regional CJNG commanders responsible for overseeing cocaine and methamphetamine trafficking operations.

While R1 represents only one element of this phenomenon, the United States is also pursuing R3 – alias “El 03” – designated as the CJNG’s newly ascended supreme leader. R3 is the biological son of Rosalinda González Valencia and the stepson of El Mencho.

Ruiz Velasco, commonly known as “El Doble R,” is identified as R3’s principal deputy and presumed shooter of influencer Márquez. His notoriety extends into Mexican music culture: the Narcocorrido favorite “El Doble R” by Los Alegres del Barranco amassed nearly 200 million Spotify streams before Jalisco imposed a performance ban on the genre in May 2025. In reaction to that ban, audience members were encouraged to sing the lyrics themselves during the band’s concert. As a result, the United States has placed a $5 million bounty on his capture.

Washington and Mexico are advancing coordinated prosecutions against several “R”‑designated figures, though the majority remain unaccounted for.

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