The death of Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera Cervantes, the leader of the Cártel Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), on February 22 was immediately framed as the fall of a narco kingpin. Images of gun battles, torched vehicles and retaliatory violence dominated headlines. Commentators spoke of a power vacuum, of fragmentation, of the possible weakening of one of Mexico’s biggest cartels.

It was presented as the removal of a singular, hyper-violent male figure at the apex of a criminal empire. But this framing tells us more about how we imagine organised crime than about how it actually works.

The obsession with kingpins rests on a dramatic understanding of cartel power: a gun in one hand, territory in the other, masculinity performed through brutality. El Mencho embodied that image.

Yet cartels are not sustained by spectacle alone. They endure because someone moves the money, launders the profits, manages the assets, cultivates legitimate fronts and binds networks of loyalty through family. In the case of CJNG, that figure was not only El Mencho. It was also, allegedly, his wife Rosalinda González Valencia.

González has often been described as “La Jefa” (the Spanish feminine form of “the boss”). It’s a label that gestures toward authority while still situating her in relation to her husband. But she was not simply the spouse of a drug lord. She came from the Valencia family, historically linked to Los Cuinis, a network deeply embedded in CJNG’s financial operations.

Authorities have alleged that she oversaw dozens of businesses, property holdings and shell companies tied to the cartel’s laundering apparatus. Arrested multiple times and jailed for five year for money laundering in 2021 (she was released last year for good behaviour), she occupied the grey zone where criminal capital bleeds into the legal economy. If El Mencho represented the cartel’s violent face, González represented its economic spine.

This is where gender matters. Organised crime is routinely portrayed as an arena of exaggerated masculinity. Women appear in these stories as victims, girlfriends, trafficked bodies or glamorous accessories.

Even when they are prosecuted, they are often framed as appendages: “the wife of”, “the daughter of”, “the partner of”. Such language, while often difficult to avoid, obscures the structural reality that many cartels operate through kinship capitalism, where family is not sentimental but strategic.

Within these systems, wives are not incidental. They help keep the business secrets in environments where betrayal is fatal. In patriarchal criminal orders, loyalty is policed through blood ties.

A spouse managing accounts is not a deviation from power but an extension of it. Gender does not exclude women from authority, but rather reshapes how that authority is exercised and perceived.

The sensational truth is this: violence may conquer territory, but finance governs it. And, as the International Crisis Group – a western non-government organisation which aims to prevent conflict – spelled out in a 2023 report, finance in many cartels is deeply gendered.

This does not mean romanticising women’s roles within organised crime. Nor does it suggest emancipation through criminality.

The power reportedly exercised by figures like González tends to be situated within male-dominated hierarchies and violent systems that are also responsible for extreme forms of violence against women, including femicide and sexual exploitation. The same structures that allow elite women to wield financial authority simultaneously reproduce brutal patriarchal control elsewhere. That contradiction is not accidental – it is the way things work.

El Mencho’s death exposes that contradiction. When the state removes a male leader, the assumption is that the organisation will collapse or descend into chaos. But cartels are not merely built around a single dominant figure. They are hybrid enterprises combining coercion, corporate structures and family governance. The removal of the public face does not automatically dismantle the private architecture.

Hidden power structure

The question, then, is not simply who will pick up the gun, but who keeps the books. Who maintains the corporate fronts? Who sustains cross-border financial channels? Who negotiates the transformation of illicit profits into legitimate capital? These are not secondary concerns. They determine whether an organisation fragments or adapts to a leader’s death or imprisonment.

By centring El Mencho alone, media narratives are perpetuating a blindness to the role of women in cartels. They equate power with violence and masculinity with control, leaving the economic and relational dimensions of authority under-analysed.

Yet organised crime studies increasingly demonstrate that durability lies in governance, not gunfire. Governance depends on management, financial oversight, logistical coordination, and embedded social networks. These functions are often feminised – not because women are naturally suited to them, but because patriarchal systems allocate them in ways that render them less conspicuous and therefore less targeted.

There is something unsettling about recognising the strategic authority of cartel wives. It complicates comfortable binaries of victim and perpetrator. It challenges the idea that women in violent systems are either coerced or just marginal figures.

But in Italy, Rafaella D’Alterio reportedly maintained the operational and financial coherence of her Camorra clan following her husband’s death. She did this – not through spectacular violence – but through administrative control, alliance-building, and family networks. Her case, as many others, underscores that durability often lies in governance rather than gunfire.

Decapitation strategies – killing a cartel’s leader – are politically dramatic and symbolically powerful. But they rest on the assumption that criminal organisations are vertically dependent on a single male. If financial governance and kinship networks remain intact, the system may regenerate.

El Mencho’s death is therefore both a rupture and a revelation. It is a rupture in the sense that the figurehead of one of the world’s most powerful cartels has fallen. But it is also a revelation of how narrow our understanding of organised crime remains.

We fixate on the spectacle of masculine violence while overlooking the quieter, gendered infrastructures that sustain it. To understand cartels solely through their kingpins is to misunderstand them. Power in organised crime does not reside only in the man with the gun, but also in the women who, whether publicly acknowledged or not, often stand at the centre of that architecture.

Green Party candidate Hannah Spencer, 34, overturned a large Labour majority to become the new MP for Gorton and Denton last night.

She came ahead of second place Reform UK candidate Matthew Goodwin and Labour’s Angeliki Stogia in third.

Following Ms Spencer’s victory speech, the Bolton Green Party’s Cllr Hanif Alli said: “An iconic and historic speech that will lay the foundations for many generations to come and a new political reset in Britain! 

“What a legend.”

Hannah Spencer celebrating with Green Party leader Zack Polanski (Image: Peter Byrne/PA)

Ms Spencer, a plumber and councillor in Trafford who previously stood as Green Party candidate in the Greater Manchester Mayoral election, won 14,980 votes.

 Reform UK’s candidate Matt Goodwin got 10,578 votes, with Labour’s Angeliki Stogia trailing on 9,364, down from 18,555 in the 2024 general election.

Conservative candidate Charlotte Cadden, a governor of Rumworth School in Ladybridge, received just 706 votes, with the Liberal Democrats’ Jackie Pearcey getting 653.

In her victory speech, Ms Spencer said people were being “bled dry” and were “sick of our hard work making other people rich”.

She said: “I won’t accept this victory tonight without calling out politicians and divisive figures who constantly scapegoat and blame our communities for all the problems in society.”

Ms Spencer jokingly apologised to customers who had made appointments for plumbing jobs.

She said: “I think I might have to cancel the work that you had booked in, because I’m heading to Parliament.”

Second placed Reform UK candidate Mr Goodwin said: “I think the progressives were told how to vote, and I think what you saw was a coalition of Islamists and woke progressives that came together to dominate a constituency.

“And many people in this country will look at Gorton and Denton and be appalled by what they see.”

He also said Reform had “embarrassed Labour in one of their strongest seats”.

The by-election was called after serving Labour MP Andrew Gwynne announced he was standing down citing “health reasons”.

Mr Gwynne had previously been embroiled in a row over a WhatsApp chat where he appeared to joke that he hoped an elderly constituent would die, among other offensive messages.

Labour candidate Ms Stogia had been selected after Andy Burnham was controversially blocked from standing as Labour’s candidate by the party’s national executive committee.

It is understood that Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer attended the meeting where Mr Burnham was blocked via video link.

Labour Party chairwoman Anna Turley said the result was “clearly disappointing”.

She said: “By-elections are normally difficult for the party of government, and this election was no different.”

She added that “the politics of anger and easy answers offered by the Greens and Reform” would not tackle the cost-of-living crisis, create opportunities for young people.

A Conservative Party spokesperson said: “Keir Starmer has killed the Labour Party.

“In losing one of Labour’s safest seats, in a constituency that has returned Labour MPs for almost a century, Starmer has shown he no longer commands the support of Labour voters and is now a lame duck leader.”

Cormac Sale has been jailed following the death of Spencer Rothwell-Poole

This is the face of a ketamine-addicted driver who killed a biker in a horror smash before asking paramedics: “Has there been a car crash?”

Cormac Sale, 22, was seen weaving in and out of traffic; overtaking vehicles on the wrong side of the road; and driving at high speeds.

The crash that followed, on December 14, 2024, claimed the life of Spencer Rothwell-Poole.

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Bolton Crown Court heard that at around 9.40pm, Sale drove onto opposite side of Chorley Old Road in Bolton and hit Mr Rothwell-Poole.

The 22-year-old motorcyclist was pronounced dead at the scene. Sale was ‘incoherent and disorientated’ in the wake of the tragedy, asking medics: “Has there been a car crash?”

He was found to be nearly 10 times the legal ketamine limit. Sale has since pleaded guilty to causing death by dangerous driving. He has been jailed for 10 years and eight months.

Following this week’s sentencing hearing, police released Sale’s custody image. Detective Constable James Maskrey, said: “This sentencing reflects the devastating consequences of choosing to drive recklessly and whilst under the influence.

“Nothing can undo the loss suffered by Spencer’s family, but it is our hope that this outcome offers some measure of justice. When someone gets behind the wheel under the influence of ketamine, they have no control of their own judgement or body, and even a moment where drivers are dissociated or unaware on the road can be fatal.

“This case is a stark reminder that dangerous driving destroys lives, and I want to reassure the public that our officers remain absolutely committed to tackling dangerous driving and removing those who pose a risk to our roads.”

Jonathan Savage, prosecuting, said numerous witnesses reported concerns about Sale’s driving in the lead up to the crash. He said visibility was poor due to adverse weather. The road was governed by a 40mph limit, he added.

Sale, then 21, was travelling towards Bolton at the time. A driver on the opposite side of the road saw Sale’s Skoda Fabia travelling at high speeds and overtaking cars. She had to swerve to avoid him.

Another driver sounded his horn and someone else had to pull into a kerb. One witness described him as ‘expressionless’.

A couple in front of Sale was forced to pull over after he accelerated behind them. They estimating he was travelling between 60mph and 75mph

CCTV captured the moment Sale hit Mr Rothwell-Poole, who was riding his Yamaha motorbike appropriately.

“The defendant crossed onto the opposite side of the carriageway causing the collision,” Mr Savage told the court. “Spencer was thrown from his motorbike.”

Despite the efforts of members of the public and paramedics at the scene, Mr Rothwell-Poole died from his injuries. A post mortem concluded he sustained multiple injuries consistent with a high-speed collision.

Sale was assessed at the roadside. He was disorientated and unable to answer questions. He claimed he had been driving at 30mph.

Sale later told officers he was addicted to ketamine and took three-and-a-half grams of the drug daily. The court heard he was not ensured at the time of the crash. Due to payment issues, his policy had been cancelled two days earlier.

Jailing Cormac – of Ina Avenue, Bolton – for 10 years and eight months, Judge Jon Close said: “You were in no condition to be driving.

“I have read and heard the moving and powerful victim impact statements from Mr Rothwell-Poole’s father and brother. They speak of their unbearable loss, endless pain and ruin you left in your wake and the suffered that will never end.

“You have taken from them more than you can ever hope to realise. Your selfish actions took the life of a good man who was very much loved. I suspect you will, as you should, carry the weight of this for the rest of your life.”

Sale was banned from driving for 12 years and one month.

I always wanted to have a rewarding career, but was never sure what I wanted to do. I worked as a kitchen assistant in a hospital for a few years, before forging an administration and management career. I made a couple of internal moves but by the time I turned 30, I felt unhappy in my job. I made one final move, becoming a paediatric medical secretaries’ manager, but remained unfulfilled. I needed more of a challenge.

Although I’d gained lots of experience, I felt that my lack of formal education was holding me back from further career progression. I began looking at my options. I always knew about BAE Systems, as a well-respected global employer, with a site local to me. However, I had the perception that the work was almost exclusively engineering and not within my reach. It felt like a far-off dream.

Once I started researching, I realised there are opportunities beyond engineering and a degree-level apprenticeship seemed a great way to retrain and change careers.

My degree apprenticeship with BAE Systems has been far more than just a career move – it’s helped me to gain confidence and develop my skills. I’ve also had the opportunity to contribute to cutting-edge projects like next generation military aircraft within FalconWorks, BAE Systems’ advanced research and technology development business.

What’s more, I’ve found the culture to be inclusive and supportive. Alongside my day job, I’ve become an ethics officer and a STEM ambassador. I’ve delivered STEM workshops and given talks to senior leaders, something I never thought I could do! My apprenticeship has brought out the best in me and I feel I’m building a well-rounded version of myself.

Balancing my work, education and family life can be difficult at times but I’m lucky to have a strong support network at home and at work. I have two young children and with the flexible working that BAE Systems offers, I’ve been able to attend the sports days and plays I previously had to miss. I’ve finally found a healthy work / life balance.

Overall, my apprenticeship is going great. I’ve won internal awards for my contribution to the team, my work in leading a STEM engagement day and my role in supporting the Royal International Air Tattoo.

If you’re considering an apprenticeship, know that there are endless opportunities within the business to progress, thanks to the knowledge and experience you’ll gain from the scheme. The apprenticeship will challenge you, but every stage is an opportunity to learn and grow. Embrace feedback and stay curious,  Most importantly, believe in yourself; you’re capable of more than you think.

To find out more visit: https://careers.baesystems.com/locations/uk/apprentices

Apprenticeship application window closes on 28th February.

Many readers welcomed the proposals saying they had already been successful abroad, while others questioned the long-term benefits of a levy on overnight stays in the county.

It comes as a national consultation into visitor levies closed last Wednesday (February 18).

The reaction also follows the county’s Labour mayor, David Skaith, clashing with North Yorkshire’s Conservative MPs who said the levy is “simply wrong” and “should not be taken forward”.

Mr Skaith has said a levy on overnight stays in the area could raise up to £52 million for York and North Yorkshire and would be a “total gamechanger for our region”.

Reacting to the proposals on The Press’ Facebook page, Jackie Smith said she was “all for it”. “If the visitors are unable to pay a small amount of a visitor charge then they are unlikely to be able to afford to put much in the coffers of local businesses,” Jackie said. “The upkeep of a city like York is a huge cost to the local council tax payers so the visitors should contribute to it.”

Dave Scott agreed, saying he was a “frequent tourist to York and happy to pay a small amount to support this most beautiful of cities”.

Several readers compared the proposals to levies on overnight stays which have already been introduced in popular European tourist cities such as Paris, Lisbon and Barcelona.

“They do it abroad, why not here?” asked Howard Carlyle.

‘Far too many taxes as it is!’

Other commenters, however, said the levy may stop tourists from visiting the area.

They said a levy in York and North Yorkshire could also result in more areas of the UK introducing similar proposals, which would hit residents holidaying elsewhere in Britain.

“What people don’t get is that when residents of York go for overnight stays elsewhere in the UK they’ll be hit with the same tax eventually,” Mark Lister said.

Commenters also raised concern at the possibility of the levy increasing yearly.

“Once implemented, tourist tax will increase every year,” Trev Jenkins said. “Far too many taxes as it is!”

Meanwhile, Conservative MPs in the county called for tighter measures to ensure that  revenue raised from the levy would be spent in the local area – a view shared by some commenters.

“I think it’s a great idea if the funds raised from a tourist tax are ringfenced with annual reports published of how much was raised and how the money has been spent in the city,” Adie Eastwood said. “Otherwise it’s just another stealth tax loaded onto UK residents and the money just disappears into the ether.”

“I am in favour of a tourist tax as long as it goes towards maintaining buildings and infrastructure that attract visitors to the county versus going into a general fund,” added Press reader ‘Not the same’, writing on the newspaper’s website.

Darren Connor, 55, was one of two men arrested at the Mosque on Upper Park Road at Victoria Park, Manchester on Tuesday February 24 during evening prayers.

The second man has since been released, while Connor has been remanded into custody ahead of an expected appearance at the magistrates court.

A Greater Manchester Police spokesperson said: “Darren Connor, a white British man of Gorton Road, Stockport has been charged with possession of an offensive weapon and possession of class B drugs.

Connor is expected to appear before Manchester and Salford Magistrates Court (Image: Anthony Moss)

“He has been remanded in custody ahead of a scheduled appearance at Manchester and Salford Magistrates Court this morning, Friday 27 February 2026.

“The second man arrested will face no further action in relation to the incident at Manchester Central Mosque.

“This charge comes after two men were arrested following an incident at Manchester Central Mosque on Tuesday February 24 2026.”

A large police presence was called to deal with the incident at the Mosque on Tuesday.

Members of the public can call police on 101 or 999 in the event of an emergency.

Alternatively, witnesses can call independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

The highly-rated Bryant Console Table has been reduced from £129 to £64

Dunelm customers are making the most of a massive clearance sale which has seen reductions of more than 50%. Amongst the deals is a highly-rated console table, now half price, which reportedly looks especially great in hallways.

Branded as “classy” and “elegant”, the Bryant Console Table has been reduced from its initial £129 down to £64.50. Sporting a mango wood effect finish, the table includes an open shelf on one side and a drawer on the other, complete with black metal legs and handles.

The item measures: H 80cm x W 110cm x D 29.5cm and requires full assembly, though customers have generally agreed in reviews that it’s “easy to out together”.

Jacky remarked: “I love this in my hall it looks amazing. Easy to assemble. Just perfect.”

Another purchaser noted: “Beautiful. Very elegant piece of furniture, adds richness to my entry hall”, reports the Liverpool Echo.

Mich commented: “Best console ever! We love it. Fits perfectly in the hallway. Glad on our choice of colour as it compliments the flooring.”

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A fourth customer shared: “So good I bought it twice! Having bought the Bryant Console Table previously for my hallway, I already knew the quality was excellent and so when I was looking for a second console table for a different room in the house, the Bryant was my go to choice.

“It’s very well made for a flat pack, was easily put together with no problems whatsoever, it’s sturdy and looks far more expensive for its very reasonable price. I ordered online for home delivery and it was with me by the fourth day of ordering. I can totally recommend this console table, so much so, I ordered another item from the collection.”

However, one customer expressed disappointment with the actual colour, stating: “Unfortunately will be returning this for a refund. The table itself is nice but the walnut is really very very dark and is not as it looks on the pictures. I feel this is because they are taken with sunlight streaming onto the table which is very misleading.”

Also in Dunelm’s clearance sale, the Fulton Small Sideboard in Black Oak is reduced to £99.50 from £199 and the Scallop Wide Sideboard is slashed to £174.50 from £349.

Elsewhere at Wayfair, Blue Elephant’s Brown Console Table is currently marked down from £139.99 to £123.99. It’s crafted from engineered wood featuring a rustic grain finish.

Over at Debenhams, the H&O Direct Rustic Wood Console Table has been reduced from £204.22 to £89.91 and is marked as ‘selling fast’.

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Sky has slashed the price of its Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle for the 2025/26 season, saving £336 and offering more than 1,400 live matches across the Premier League, EFL and more.

Sky shows at least 215 live Premier League games each season, an increase of up to 100, plus Formula 1, darts, golf and more.

A mum couldn’t stop laughing when her identical twin daughters came home from their first day at nursery

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A mother was in stitches after seeing her twin daughters following their first day at nursery.

Entrusting your children to childcare or leaving them in someone else’s care for the day represents a significant milestone for any parent.

Having spent months bonding with your baby, the separation can prove jarring and feel distinctly unnatural.

Both mums and dads, along with the child, must adjust to unfamiliar routines and faces, which can require considerable time.

However, one parent found herself crying with laughter following her twin daughters’ maiden nursery experience.

Natalya, aged 29 and mother to four girls all under four years old, revealed what she discovered when her identical twins returned home from nursery.

When they arrived back, the girls, Thea and Faye, were lying on their stomachs playing when Natalya noticed something attached to the back of their T-shirts.

It seemed the nursery staff had employed parcel tape to label each child, enabling them to distinguish between the pair.

Natalya posted the footage on her TikTok account, @withnatalya_, captioning it ‘how my identical twins were sent home from their first day’.

The clip left parents in hysterics as they remembered comparable experiences with their own twins. Nursery workers and childcare professionals also contributed their accounts of managing twins.

One commenter wrote: “We did this at the beginning of the year and few months in we knew who was who – but dad had to ask the girls every pick up ‘which one are you?’” Another person shared: “I have identical twin toddler girls in my class, I’ve been able to identify their different personality traits.”

They explained: “One is more of my Velcro baby than the other, but mom got their ears pierced as infants so one wears pink earrings and one wears purple.”

Adding further: “She also often dresses them in their respective assigned colour and their water bottles they bring from home are also are pink and purple.”

A third commenter revealed: “The daycare our twins go to, is owned by identical twins. So they are SPOILED there. They had to go to a new class for one day and this is how they came home, I giggled.”