Pájaros Sierra vs CJNG: Police Commissioner of Tizapán Killed by Hitmen in Jalisco

"HEARST" for Borderland Beat

José Antonio Languren Martínez, the police commissioner of Tizapán el Alto, Jalisco, was gunned down by hitmen. The Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) was likely behind the attack according to online allegations about the commissioner’s ties to Pájaros Sierra.

The End of Commissioner Languren

On the afternoon of Sunday, June 12, 2022, the police commissioner for the town of Tizapán el Alto, was driving down Highway 15 in his patrol car while accompanied by 3 other officers, some of whom were possibly in a second vehicle. 

Tizapán is located in far eastern Jalisco, near the border of Michoacán, right in the heart of the on-going conflict between the CJNG and it’s splinter group Pájaros Sierra. Tizapán el Alto is one of the larger towns within the region and lies just south of Lake Chapala. 

The Tizapán police commissioner, José Antonio Languren Martínez was accompanied by his deputy director. Commissioner Languren had been shot at by cartel hitmen the month before, on May 17, 2022, so it's likely that some of the other officers riding with him in the patrol vehicle were acting as bodyguards. 

According to Milenio newspaper, a group of 15 hitmen spotted his vehicle, as they lay in wait, parked near the shores of Lake Chapala. The hitmen were sitting inside three pickup trucks, two of the pickups were Dodge Rams and the third was a Toyota Hilux. Some of their vehicles reportedly had colored lights which were meant to mimic the appearance of police patrol vehicle lights.  

Once the commissioner’s vehicle passed their location, the hitmen pulled onto Highway 15 behind him and they opened fire on him. The commissioner and those accompanying him were hit. After a significant amount of gunfire, the three pickup trucks drove away from the area, heading east, in the direction of Michoacán. 

One of the wounded officers requested help on radio and the first to arrive on scene to help were soldiers from the National Guard, followed shortly after by the Ciénega de Jalisco police. Three of the four in the vehicle had suffered gunshot wounds and were rushed for medical care to Jocotepec. 

Shortly after the shooting, Commissioner Languren died from his injuries, meanwhile the other two men were flown on a helicopter out to a more advanced medical facility in the city of Guadalajara due to the seriousness of their wounds. The two men are said to currently remain in serious but stable condition according to the press conference later given by the mayor of Tizapán, Martin Silva Ramirez. 

Mayor Silva Ramirez also stated that after the previous cartel attack on May 17, the commissioner had never reported receiving a direct threat but he had asked government authorities to reinforce security in the area. The mayor added that following the May 17 attack, multiple Tizapán police officers had resigned due to concern for their personal safety. 

"They have been resigning due to the insecurity in the municipality, several have already resigned about 20 days ago," said Silva Ramirez. He also stated that this Sunday afternoon, he had spoken with the Secretary of Government and with the Secretariat of State Public Security and requested more security personnel be assigned to the area. He said the men assured him that they would assign more personnel. 

Languren became commissioner in October 2021 after previously serving as an officer within the same department. Both Noventa Grados and El Blog de los Guachos report that unofficially it is being said that Languren worked for Pájaros Sierra’s Abel Alcántar Vallejo, alias “El Toro” or "Sierra 8". If this was true, then it makes it likely that the CJNG was behind the killing of Languren.

Previous Events in the Pájaros Sierra vs CJNG War

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Sources: Milenio Article 1, Article 2 , Quadratin, El Blog de los Guachos Post 1, Post 2, Sol Yucatan, UDG TV, Noticias En La Mira, Toño Neri Johnston, Jose Cardenas, NTR Guadalajara, Noventa Grados