Mexican military have arrested the wife of the country's most wanted man, “El Mencho,” known as the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).

Rosalinda Gonzalez Valencia, who allegedly runs the CJNG's finances, was arrested in Zapopan in “a significant blow to the financial structure of organized crime in the state,” the defense ministry said Tuesday in a statement.

Valencia was arrested on money laundering charges for her involvement with “the illicit financial operation of an organized crime group” but was released on bail after paying 1.5 million pesos ($78,000), the ministry added.

Her husband, whose real name is Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, is a former police officer who became the head of one of the two most powerful criminal groups in Mexico, the Guardian noted.

His cartel has been responsible for several deadly attacks on security forces, including an assassination attempt in 2020 on Mexico City's police chief, Omar Garcia Harfuch.

CJNG has also been blamed for smuggling large quantities of drugs into the U.S., including the drug synthetic opioid fentanyl. U.S. data shows that overdose deaths mostly linked to fentanyl rose to more than 93,000 in 2020.

“El Mencho” has been on the run for years. The Drug Enforcement Administration is offering a $10 million reward for information leading to his capture.

His son with Gonzales, known as “Menchito" (Little Mencho), or Ruben Oseguera Gonzalez, was extradited to the U.S. on drug trafficking charges in 2020. The cartel has since stepped up attacks as retaliation for Menchito’s arrest, BBC News noted.

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