# Mexican authorities target Los Mezcales leadership

> Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/mexican-authorities-target-los-mezcales-leadership
> Updated: 2026-08-31T01:29:08.000Z. Sources: 42. Developments: 2.

In August 2026, Mexican authorities conducted a joint operation involving the Mexican Navy (Semar) and the Oaxaca State Attorney General's Office (FGEO) to detain Carlos Miguel Mercado Meraz, known by aliases such as ‘El Abulón’, ‘El Coco’, and ‘León’. 

Mercado Meraz is identified as the second-in-command of the criminal organization ‘Los Mezcales’, also known as the ‘Cártel Independiente de Colima’. The arrest took place in a private residential complex in the Ejido Guadalupe Victoria area, north of Oaxaca City. Intelligence reports link Mercado Meraz to homicides, extortion, and drug trafficking in the state of Colima, where his group is involved in territorial disputes with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).

## Timeline

### 2026-08-31: Oaxaca authorities arrest suspect in violent cell phone store robbery

Oaxaca authorities arrested H. O. G. for a violent robbery in Zimatlán de Álvarez, where he allegedly stole 63 cell phones after threatening a store employee with a knife.

27 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/oaxaca-authorities-report-domestic-violence-arrest-and-disappearance-conviction

### 2026-08-20: Oaxaca authorities detain ‘El Abulón’, second-in-command of Los Mezcales

Authorities in Oaxaca detained Carlos Miguel Mercado Meraz, alias ‘El Abulón’, identified as the second-in-command of the ‘Los Mezcales’ criminal group linked to violence in Colima.

19 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/la-paz-authorities-charge-three-individuals-with-environmental-crimes

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Cite as: Mexican authorities target Los Mezcales leadership. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/mexican-authorities-target-los-mezcales-leadership