Published Friday 13 November, 1:25 p.m. ET · Source: US Justice Department and US District Court, Washington
A US judge has sentenced the brother of the late Mexican cartel leader known as El Mencho to 22 years and six months in prison. The term is longer than the 20 years his own lawyers had asked for.
Judge Beryl A. Howell sentenced Antonio Oseguera Cervantes, nicknamed “Tony Montana”, in a federal court in Washington on Friday 13 November, according to courtroom accounts. The Justice Department lists his age as 67, and he is the brother of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, known as “El Mencho”, co-founder of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), as we reported earlier this month.
The US government designated the CJNG a foreign terrorist organisation in February 2025. The Justice Department says the drugs in his guilty plea were meant for import into the United States.
What We Know
The US Justice Department says he was sentenced to 270 months, which is 22 years and six months. It says the sentence covers international drug trafficking and firearm offences.
That is above the 20 years, or 240 months, that his defence had asked for, and below the 30 years that courtroom accounts say prosecutors sought. Some headlines give the term as 22 years, but the Justice Department figure of 270 months equals 22 years and six months.
Mexican National Guard vehicles at the entrance of Guadalajara International Airport in Jalisco, the state that gives the Jalisco New Generation Cartel its name, 4 March 2022. Photo: ProtoplasmaKid, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.In Plain English: the CJNG is the Mexican drug gang his brother co-founded, and the DEA is the US Drug Enforcement Administration, which investigates drug crime. A guilty plea means he admitted the charges, and his defence is his team of lawyers.
What He Said Before the Sentence
In a letter to the judge before the hearing, he wrote that he deeply regrets his actions and the harm they caused. His defence had asked the court for no more than 20 years.
How the Case Reached Washington
Mexico transferred him to the United States in February 2025 under its national security law, the Justice Department says. He pleaded guilty on 31 July 2026, which means he admitted the charges instead of going to trial.
The plea covers conspiracy to distribute at least five kilograms of cocaine and 500 grams of methamphetamine for import into the United States. It also covers using, carrying and possessing a firearm to further that conspiracy.
According to court documents cited by the department, he supplied chemicals to methamphetamine laboratories, first for the Milenio Cartel, an older Mexican drug gang, and later for the CJNG. It says he joined that gang around 2002, shortly after serving a US federal prison sentence for conspiracy to distribute heroin.
The department says he later managed the CJNG’s collection and laundering of drug proceeds and was armed with a pistol when collecting proceeds and attending meetings. It says the CJNG was created in 2010, when the Milenio Cartel’s military faction split off after its top leader was arrested.
Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes co-founded the CJNG and led it from 2010 until he was killed in a Mexican military operation in February 2026, the department says. This case is part of the Homeland Security Task Force, a government-wide partnership against cartels set up under Executive Order 14159, a presidential directive.
What US Officials Said
A. Tysen Duva, Assistant Attorney General who heads the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, said: “For more than two decades, Antonio Oseguera Cervantes helped fuel one of the world’s most dangerous drug trafficking organizations, flooding America’s communities with deadly drugs.” He added that the sentence sends a message that the department is committed to the “total elimination of drug cartels”.Terry Cole, Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), the US agency that investigates drug trafficking, said the sentencing shows that “no cartel leader is beyond the reach of American justice.” He said Oseguera Cervantes “was far more than El Mencho’s brother” and played a significant role in building the CJNG into a violent foreign terrorist organisation.
What Is Not Known
The Justice Department release gives only the 270-month total, not how it divides between the drug and firearm counts. It does not mention forfeiture, meaning the surrender of assets tied to the crimes, or supervised release, a period of oversight after prison.
It is not known which prison or medical facility will hold him. It is also not known whether he will appeal.
The release names neither the judge nor the court. Those details come from courtroom accounts of the hearing.
What It Means for Travelers and US Readers
This is a US court outcome, and it changes no travel rule for Mexico or the United States. It does not change conditions in Jalisco or elsewhere in Mexico.
For wider context, see our Mexico news page and our earlier coverage of the El Mencho fallout for Mexican markets. The Justice Department frames the case as part of its push against cartels that bring drugs into the United States.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long is Antonio Oseguera Cervantes’s sentence?
A US judge sentenced him to 270 months, which is 22 years and six months. The Justice Department announced the sentence on Friday 13 November 2026.
Who is “Tony Montana”?
It is the nickname of Antonio Oseguera Cervantes, 67, the brother of the late CJNG co-founder known as El Mencho. He pleaded guilty on 31 July 2026 to drug and firearms charges.
Is 22.5 years more than expected?
It is above the 20 years his defence asked for. Courtroom accounts say prosecutors had sought 30 years.
Does the sentence change anything for travelers?
No, because it is a US court outcome. It changes no travel rule for Mexico or the United States.
Sources: US Department of Justice, press release No. 26-1359, 13 November 2026; US State Department, announcement of terrorist designations of cartels, 20 February 2025 (text reproduced by GlobalSecurity.org); courtroom accounts of the sentencing hearing, 13 November 2026 (all accessed 13 November 2026).