A Mexican federal police officer who survived the 2015 helicopter crash was killed in an ambush on April 30th. He was considered a symbol of the fight against organized crime.
Elmencho Documentary: How Mexican Cartel bosses are permeating us
The short film details the Courier Journal’s investigation into CJNG and its leader, El Mencho.
Alton Strap and Matt Stone, Louisville Courier Journal
After appearing as the sole survivor of the 2015 military helicopter attack, a former Mexican police officer known as a symbol of the fight against drug cartels, died in an ambush on April 30.
The SUV hit a black truck driven by Ivan Morales Colleles. 43. The gunman killed Morales and an unidentified woman in the state of Moraros, 2.5 hours south of Mexico City, and fired more than dozens of shots, according to two retired US drug agents and multiple Mexican media outlets. It is unknown who killed the victim or why. The case is under investigation.
The murder in the city of Temixco – usually a place of peace – came on the 10th anniversary week of the helicopter losers who denounced Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación, known as the CJNG. The cartel is one of Mexico’s most extremists, turning the territory they control into bad zones by using rudimentary tanks, roadside bombs and missing emergers.
“If it were CJNG, it’s a very symbolic demonstration of power,” says Victoria Dittmar, a Mexican cartel expert with Insight Crime, a group studying organized crime. “Now it’s headlines in every newspaper in the country.”
The attack comes amidst a continuing brave strike against Mexican authorities in 2015, which began with cartel soldiers carrying Morales carrying helicopters. Authorities never expected such a direct attack on the military, and it was seen as a fork moment.
Ten years later, attacks on Mexican soldiers and police became common in regional control.
“This group is not as weak as before. Speaking of which, even if it’s getting stronger, we still see this very direct expression of violence against the nation,” Dittmar told USA Today. “They are developing weapons with IEDs and are forced to attack Mexican troops and retreat from certain areas.”
Morales is survived by a 9-year-old boy and a 4-year-old girl.
Officers talk about the surviving Chopper attack
Morales was a police officer when a member of the cartel shot down the chopper he was riding on. His survival made him an icon in the fight against drug and cartel violence in Mexico and the United States.
For him, it was about his child.
In 2019, Morales spoke about his survival of a fiery helicopter crash that was severely burned and damaged his appearance during an interview with the Louisville Courier Journal, part of the USA Today Network.
The special report on the CJNG was part of a five-year investigation into the causes of drugs that fueled the deadliest drug outbreak in American history. With over 5,000 members, the powerful supercartel has been criticized along with the infamous Sinaloa cartel for the majority of fentanyl, cocaine and heroin that saturates Kentucky, Tennessee and other US cities.
On the morning of the attack, Morales climbed one of five military helicopters, headed into the darkness and stormed the CJNG compound into rural rural areas in western Jalisco.. He and other federal police officers teamed up with soldiers on a secret mission to arrest Elmencho, the cartel boss.
As the helicopter flew over the CJNG truck and SUV convoy, the cartel members fired grenade launchers and armored guns. Morales raw flames, ran away, and suffered considerable burns. A fellow officer and several soldiers have died.
That day, his then-fiance told him she was pregnant with her first child.
On the day of the crash of the helicopter, Morales knew he might die, but he repeatedly told the soldiers who had erected him with his stretcher why he needed to survive: “I’ll be a dad!”
Morales nearly died of organ failure in a hospital in Mexico City, suffering second and third degree burns, more than 70% of his body. His pregnant fiance continued to stay up all night by his side. Six weeks later, his son was born.
“Knowing that I was going to be a dad motivated me to fight,” Morales said in a 2019 interview.
Morales retained his appearance and was unable to return to work. Four years after the crash, he said it was difficult to deal with stares and whispers from strangers.
One day, his three-year-old son sat on his lap, smacking the scar with his tiny fingers and asking what had happened. Morales will say that he was hurt in the accident because he felt his son was too young to understand the ruthlessness of the cartel. He said he was afraid of the idea that he had to tell him the truth.
What is CJNG?
The brave show of violence in defeating military helicopters surprised law enforcement on both sides of the border, realizing that CJNG leaders were willing to stop them.
Drug Enforcement Agency officials put boss Elmencho on the list of most wanted fugitives, with the State Department providing up to $15 million for information that led to his capture.
Justice Department officials recently celebrated the extradition of 29 cartel leaders from Mexico. Among them were Elmencho’s brother, Antonio Osseguera Cervantes, and Antonio Osseguera Cervantes, known as “Tony Montana.” Both have been charged in federal court in Washington, DC
However, despite important arrests, the cartel bosses remain large and the CJNG remains a powerful force.
“Even important arrests are very exchangeable,” says Dittmar, a native of the state CJNG, insight expert, calling his home. “So, from the perspective of a demonstration of power, there was no difference.
According to Dittmar, CJNG has started as a derivative of the Sinaloa cartel, specialized in the production of methamphetamine. They are not as rich or powerful as their rival cartels, but they inspire a wider range of fear.
“Their use of violence is more aggressive,” Dittmar said. “The CJNG model is to expand, take territory and eliminate previous groups.”
Cartel members posted videos of themselves on social media on rudimentary tanks, forcibly recruiting foot soldiers, changing daily lives in Jalisco and the surrounding states they manage. People should not only avoid going out at night, but also be careful where they step into the daytime for fear of mines.
My hurt father was respected
Morales’s wounded face reminded me of the government’s efforts.
He appeared in several events over the years and symbolized courage in his difficult battles with powerful cartels. The then-Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto praised Morales at an open ceremony.
Despite everything Morales lost, he said he had no regrets.
“I knew the risks,” he said. “I was committed to doing my job.”
Morales expressed optimism that Elmencho’s reign would eventually end.
“That’s not hopeless.”
Michael Loria is a news reporter for USA Today. Beth Warren covers Tennessee healthcare, part of the USA Today network.