U.S. Grand Jury Charges 'El R-1' and Brother 'El R-2' as CJNG's 'Los Rs' Cell Reorganizes Under New Leadership

Infobae reported August 27, 2026 that a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia filed an indictment against Ramón Ángel Álvarez Ayala ('El R-1') — the 'Los Rs' cell leader arrested July 30, 2026 in Atotonilco el Alto, Jalisco, and linked to the November 1, 2025 assassination of former Uruapan mayor Carlos Manzo — and his brother Rafael Álvarez Ayala ('El R-2'), who Mexican authorities have identified as R-1's successor atop Los Rs, a CJNG-affiliated cell operating across Apatzingán, Uruapan, and Morelia in Michoacán and Jalisco. Both brothers face charges of conspiracy to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine for import into the United States, plus firearms offenses, carrying a mandatory minimum of 40 years and a maximum of two consecutive life sentences each; the underlying DEA-Los Angeles investigation spans 2004 through December 2023. Unlike R-1, R-2 remains at large and is now a named U.S. target, illustrating CJNG's franchise cells reconstituting leadership from within family/cell networks rather than fracturing after a capture.