Mexico City, 28 April (LaPresse) – The Mexican army has arrested Audias Flores Silva, known as ‘El Jardinero’, in the north-west of the country. He is considered one of the main leaders of the New Generation Jalisco Cartel (CJNG). The operation represents another major blow to the criminal organisation, two months after the killing of its leader, Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho”. Flores Silva, believed to be the possible successor to the slain leader, was also wanted by the United States, which had offered a reward of $5 million for information leading to his capture. According to the Mexican authorities, Flores Silva was arrested whilst in hiding near El Mirador, in the state of Nayarit, with no other casualties or injuries reported. His capture comes against a backdrop of a sharp escalation in cartel-related violence, which erupted following the death of El Mencho – leading to a series of attacks on commercial premises by armed men, vehicle fires and roadblocks that have caused more than 70 deaths, including 25 members of the National Guard – and marks a further step in the Mexican government’s offensive against one of the continent’s most powerful criminal organisations.