U.S. State Department had offered up to $3 million for his arrest
Military intelligence led the Mexican army and National Guard to conduct the operation in the Rodeo del Pinal area of Tocumbo in coordination with the Michoacán Attorney General’s Office and state police, García Harfuch said on social media. Gunmen opened fire on the security forces, prompting troops to return fire, he said. Authorities recovered two automatic rifles, ammunition, magazines and an all-terrain vehicle at the scene, according to a joint statement from Mexico’s security Cabinet. The bodies and evidence were turned over to the Michoacán Attorney General’s Office.
Barragán Chávez took control of the Los Reyes Cartel after soldiers arrested its previous leader, Alfonso Fernández Magallón, known as “Poncho” or “La Quiringua,” on Aug. 1 in Los Reyes de Salgado, according to the security Cabinet. The two operations removed the cartel’s top leaders within one month, García Harfuch said.
Mexican authorities identified Barragán Chávez as the leader of the Los Reyes Cartel and the main coordinator of extortion targeting avocado growers in the region. The U.S. Treasury Department had also described him as a regional leader of Cárteles Unidos involved in avocado-related extortion.
Barragán Chávez was subject to a provisional arrest warrant for extradition to the United States, and the State Department had offered up to $3 million for information leading to his arrest or conviction. U.S. officials identified him as the chief sicario, or hitman, of the Los Reyes Cartel, a faction of the broader Cárteles Unidos alliance.
The State Department designated Cárteles Unidos as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist on Feb. 20, 2025. Cárteles Unidos acts as an umbrella organization for several Michoacán criminal groups involved in producing and trafficking methamphetamine, fentanyl and cocaine to the United States, according to the Justice Department. The alliance has fought the Jalisco New Generation Cartel for territory and drug-trafficking routes in western Michoacán.
The Justice Department announced charges against Barragán Chávez and four other senior Cárteles Unidos figures in August 2025. Prosecutors accused Barragán Chávez of participating in a drug-trafficking conspiracy and carrying or using firearms in connection with the alleged crimes. Court filings alleged that Barragán Chávez commanded an armed faction that used assault weapons, explosive devices, weaponized drones, armored vehicles and foreign mercenaries to enforce cartel control.
Michoacán Gov. Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla said security forces remain deployed in Los Reyes, Peribán, Tingüindín, Tocumbo and Cotija — municipalities near the Jalisco border that include some of Mexico’s main avocado-producing areas. The operation is part of an effort to combat extortion in the agricultural region, Bedolla said.