Érick Valencia Salazar

Érick Valencia Salazar (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈerik βaˈlensja salaˈsaɾ]; born 11 March 1977 or 19 November 1982), commonly referred to by his alias El 85, is a Mexican drug lord and high-ranking leader of the CJNG. He served as a high-ranking leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), a criminal group based in Jalisco. He was extradited to the United States in 2025. The Mexican Army suspects he was responsible for supervising the CJNG's cocaine and ephedrine delivery shipments from Colombia and China to Mexico, and for coordinating attacks against rival groups like La Resistencia and Los Zetas in the 2010s. Before leading the CJNG, Valencia reportedly held a leadership role within the Milenio Cartel, the predecessor group where the CJNG originated from. When several of his superiors were arrested and/or killed, Valencia and several others from the Milenio Cartel reportedly formed the CJNG.

On 3 March 2012, the Mexican Army arrested Valencia in Zapopan, Jalisco. The arrest triggered a series of coordinated attacks carried out by the CJNG to try to rescue Valencia. Throughout the states of Jalisco and Michoacán, the CJNG hijacked 25 vehicles and set them on fire across multiple highways. Three people were killed and sixteen suspects were arrested. On 27 December 2017, Valencia was released from prison after a judge concluded there were violations in his due process and because of insufficient evidence. Investigators suspect Valencia resumed activities in the CJNG following his release. In 2018, the U.S. government unsealed an indictment that charged Valencia for drug trafficking offenses since 2003. In September 2022, Valencia was rearrested by the Mexican Army and National Guard in Tapalpa, Jalisco. On 27 February 2025, Valencia was extradited to the United States.