Cartel Kidnaps Jalisco Mayor's Wife, Demands Public Security Chief's Removal as Ransom

The wife of Villa Hidalgo, Jalisco, Mayor Jaime Cruz Villalpando was kidnapped by members of the Jalisco Nueva Generación Cartel (CJNG) in Aguascalientes on Friday.

Brenda Marisol Montañez Saucedo was leaving a gated residential community when she was abducted. After Montañez Saucedo was taken, CJNG contacted Villalpando, demanding he replace Villa Hidalgo's current municipal Public Security Chief with a person of their choosing.

Notably, this was not the first time the criminal group had issued such a demand. Previously, CJNG had abducted the mayor, his son, and two municipal workers under the same conditions. They were released after agreeing to replace his security chief, but Villalpando never followed through on the change.

How it all Started

On February 4, municipal authorities launched an investigation into narcomantas—messages left by drug cartels on cloth banners, usually containing threats—that had appeared in Aguascalientes targeting Mexican artist Oscar Maydon. Notably, Villalpando is also a concert promoter. As a result of these threats, Maydon canceled his scheduled performance at a regional fair that day.

Villalpando's son, Sebastián Cruz, reportedly attempted to resolve the narcomantas issue by meeting with cartel members in Tepatitlán, Jalisco. However, the criminal group kidnapped him and later called his father, inviting him to "fix the issue" as well.

Villalpando agreed to meet with them, and on February 5, he and two municipal workers were also kidnapped during the meeting.

The mayor was taken to a safe house in Tepatitlán, where he met with a CJNG leader known as "El Charro," one of the main suspects in the January kidnapping and murder of Mexican businessman Ricardo Rodríguez Zamora.

During their conversation, "El Charro" accused Villalpando of favoring a rival criminal group and demanded that he replace his current municipal Public Security Chief. After hours of negotiation, the mayor agreed to their terms, and CJNG released him, his son, and the two municipal workers.

According to a report obtained by Infobae, the mayor received multiple calls on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday pressuring him to replace his security chief, but he refused to comply.

Eventually, Villalpando was informed that his wife had been kidnapped. As of Sunday afternoon, Montañez Saucedo had not been released.