Mexico City, Mexico - Mexico on Thursday said it captured the mastermind behind the assassination of a tough-on-crime mayor in a shock killing that ignited rage last year.

Assassins killed Uruapan Mayor Carlos Manzo last November while he was on the street with his family for the traditional Day of the Dead ceremony.

The killing shocked many Mexicans who saw the cowboy hat-wearing mayor as a modern-day Robin Hood, regularly seen accompanying police on crime-fighting operations.

On Thursday, authorities announced the arrest of a suspect known as Ramon Angel "N," also known as "R1," whose last name was withheld for judicial reasons.

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Mexico's security minister Omar Garcia Harfuch announced in a post on X that the suspect was the leader of an armed group working for the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG).

The arrest took place in the town of Atotonilco el Alto in Jalisco state, where an AFP journalist saw the deployment of soldiers and armed vehicles.

Manzo's widow and current Uruapan mayor Grecia Quiroz welcomed the arrest, writing on Facebook: "This progress is only the beginning of everything behind the murder of Carlos Manzo; I am convinced there is still much more to be clarified."

During his time as mayor, Manzo gave speeches denouncing Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum and the Michoacan state government, whom he held responsible for failing to contain violence.

More than 130,000 people have been "disappeared" at the hands of criminals or authorities since the start of the drug war in 2006, according to official numbers.

Harfuch said the latest suspect – the 31st arrest in relation to Manzo's slaying – was nabbed "after months of intelligence work" involving police and Mexican army special forces.

"This organization is tied to extortion, homicides, and drug trafficking, directly affecting producers, businessmen, and families in the region," Harfuch said.