Álvarez hospitalized after the arrest
Álvarez suffered gunshot wounds to his abdomen, leg and arm before being taken into custody. He was hospitalized in Guadalajara and reportedly underwent surgery. A navy member was also shot; the federal Security Ministry (SSPC) said his injury was not life-threatening.
The confrontation occurred Sunday afternoon at Sabea, a restaurant and hookah lounge where Álvarez had reportedly arrived about 20 hours earlier. Although authorities placed the arrest in Zapopan, the venue is in Guadalajara's Vallarta Norte neighborhood, close to the boundary between the two municipalities.
The navy and SSPC said the suspects opened fire and navy personnel fired back. The Navy Ministry (SEMAR) and federal Security Minister Omar García Harfuch announced the arrests that afternoon. The SSPC described the other 19 people detained as "alleged lawbreakers" and said they had been handed over to the "appropriate authorities."
Intelligence cooperation and U.S. charges
García Harfuch credited work by Mexico's National Intelligence Center (CNI) and information from the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) with helping authorities find Álvarez. The Michoacán Attorney General's Office also supplied information, the SSPC said.
According to García Harfuch, Álvarez faced a homicide arrest warrant issued by a judge in Michoacán as well as a warrant for his extradition to the United States.
The U.S. extradition warrant stems from an indictment returned by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia on Aug. 26, 2026, according to The Rio Times and Latin Times. It names Álvarez and his brother Ramón Ángel Álvarez Ayala, known as "R1," on charges of conspiring to manufacture and distribute cocaine and methamphetamine for the U.S. market, along with firearms offenses.
Acknowledging the arrest, the DEA described R2 as "a senior leader of the CJNG terrorist organization responsible for drug trafficking, extortion, kidnapping, and deadly violence across Mexico." It confirmed that its intelligence had helped locate him and that he was wanted in the United States on federal drug trafficking and firearms charges.
The agency praised the "decisive actions" of the SSPC, SEMAR, Mexico's Defense Ministry (SEDENA) and CNI. Its statement added: "Criminal organizations operate across borders. So do the partnerships determined to dismantle them."
The brothers and the Manzo murder case
Authorities identify R1 as the alleged mastermind of Manzo's assassination on Nov. 1, 2025. The mayor was shot dead during a Day of the Dead event in Uruapan's main square. By the end of July 2026, 31 people had been arrested in the case, The Rio Times reported.
R1 was arrested on July 30, 2026, in Atotonilco el Alto, Jalisco. The following day, García Harfuch said R2 was likely to succeed him as head of Los Rs, according to The Rio Times.
The brothers had previously spent a decade in prison after their arrests in 2012. Latin Times reported that the Mexican Army detained them during coordinated operations in Guadalajara and Zapopan. They were released in November 2022 after an acquittal, reportedly because of insufficient evidence in multiple criminal cases.
Los Rs' activities in Michoacán and Jalisco
Mexican and U.S. authorities describe Los Rs as a CJNG cell rooted in the conflict-ridden Michoacán municipalities of Apatzingán, Uruapan and Morelia, with a growing presence in Jalisco, according to Latin Times. The outlet reported that R2 oversaw logistics and drug movements and coordinated armed cells.
García Harfuch said the group's principal activities include extortion, drug trafficking, homicide, unlawful deprivation of liberty, kidnapping and attacks on authorities. Business owners and avocado producers are among its extortion victims, he said. The SSPC characterized Álvarez as "one of the main generators of violence in the region," referring to Jalisco and neighboring Michoacán.
Reforma, citing information from Mexico's Defense Ministry, reported that R1, R2 and a third brother, Jesús Santiago, known as "R3," previously received orders directly from former CJNG leader Nemesio "El Mencho" Oseguera Cervantes. Oseguera was fatally wounded during a Mexican military operation in Jalisco in February.
