Tecomán, Colima: CJNG Ambushes Police, Deploys Narcobloqueos to Shield Commander; 2 Killed, 5 Arrested (Incl. U.S. Citizen), Schools Closed

Day 93 since El Mencho's killing at Tapalpa, Jalisco (February 22, 2026). TECOMÁN CJNG CONFRONTATION — DAY 93: On the afternoon/evening of May 25–26, 2026, state investigative police (SSPE) responded to a 911 call in the community of Caleras, Tecomán municipality, Colima — and were immediately ambushed by CJNG gunmen. A full multi-agency security operation followed. OPERATIONAL RESULTS (reported May 26): 2 CJNG members killed in the confrontation; 5 CJNG suspects arrested, including one U.S. citizen from Atlanta, Georgia ('José N.'), wanted by U.S. authorities for homicide — transferred to U.S. custody via Interpol coordination; 2 state police officers wounded; 1 artisanal armored truck (blindado artesanal) seized; 6 long guns (AK-47, AR-15, and one .50-caliber Barrett sniper rifle), 1 handgun, 7 improvised explosive devices (IEDs), and 35 magazines seized, along with tactical vests bearing CJNG insignia. NARCOBLOQUEOS — SCHOOL CLOSURES: Following the confrontation, CJNG members deployed roadblocks (narcobloqueos) on the Manzanillo-Colima federal highway as a counteroperation to the security response. Schools in Tecomán, Manzanillo, Armería, and Ixtlahuacán were closed as a precautionary measure due to the roadblocks and ongoing security operation. COMMANDER PROTECTION MOTIVE: Colima's public security secretary Fabián Ricardo Gómez Calcáneo stated to El Universal that the CJNG had deployed the roadblocks as 'a desperate measure to prevent one of their commanders from being captured' — though the commander's name was not publicly disclosed. This is consistent with the post-El Chucky (arrested May 9) Manzanillo command void and ongoing CJNG efforts to protect mid-tier plaza management from the sustained post-Mencho law enforcement surge. RESPONDING AGENCIES: Mexican Navy (SEMAR), SEDENA (Army), National Guard (GN), Colima state police, federal police, and Colima state prosecutors all participated in the multi-agency response. CONTEXT — DAY 93: This Tecomán confrontation represents CJNG's third major security-force engagement in Colima since El Mencho's death — following the April 16 arrest of 8 Manzanillo police for CJNG intel leaks and the April 17 Coquimatlán highway confrontation (3 CJNG killed). Tecomán lies ~45km southeast of Manzanillo and is within the Colima coastal corridor that CJNG controls for fentanyl precursor movements from the Port of Manzanillo. The CJNG's willingness to deploy IEDs, armored vehicles, and narcobloqueos to protect a mid-level commander confirms the cartel's continued resistance capacity in its Colima heartland 93 days after El Mencho's killing.