The Department of Justice filed an indictment against Rubén Rocha and other government officials, accusing them of "conspiring with leaders of the Sinaloa cartel to import massive quantities of narcotics into the United States." The regional president was confident that he will demonstrate that the case "lacks veracity and foundation." Meanwhile, the Government of Mexico announced a diplomatic claim to Washington.
First modification: 04/29/2026 - 22:50 Last modification: 04/30/2026 - 04:28
To display this YouTube content, you must allow advertising and audience measurement cookies.
An extension on your browser appears to be blocking the video player from loading. In order to view this content, you must disable it on this site.
The Prosecutor's Office for the Southern District of New York revealed that it charged 10 people, including the governor of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha, for allegedly conspiring together with the famous drug trafficking cartel of that Mexican state to introduce “massive quantities” of fentanyl, heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine into the United States.
According to the charging documents from the Department of Justice, Rocha would have benefited from an alleged link with the children of Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán to be elected in 2021 after the so-called 'Chapitos' helped him by "kidnapping and intimidating his rivals."
To display this content from X (Twitter), you must allow audience measurement and advertising cookies.
The accusation, which also includes the mayor of Culiacán, Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil, and Senator Enrique Inzunza Cázarez, was rejected by Rocha, who expressed confidence that he will be able to demonstrate that "it lacks veracity and foundation" and is motivated by the intention to harm the ruling party in Mexico, Morena.
Read also: Narcos or terrorists?: the effects of the new classification of Mexican cartels in the US.
Mexico: "There are no elements of evidence"
For its part, the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed having received the requests for provisional arrest (without specifying the names), but assured that the documentation "does not have elements of evidence to determine the responsibility of the accused persons."
In addition, the Foreign Ministry indicated that it will send a note of protest to Washington for the way in which it reported the case.
"It is reported that in the current treaties there are specific provisions that establish the confidentiality of the information, for this reason an expulsion will be sent to the United States Embassy due to the way in which the case was made known," the Mexican ministry indicated.
However, the United States Embassy in Mexico supported the accusation and stressed that, although it cannot comment on the details of the case or the specific accusations, the United States will investigate and punish corruption linked to organized crime when it has "jurisdiction."
He stressed that combating corruption and transnational crime is a "shared priority" between Mexico and the United States, which is why both countries remain committed to strengthening transparency.
"Corruption that facilitates organized crime and harms both countries will be investigated and prosecuted in all cases in which the jurisdiction of the United States applies," the Embassy said.
Along these lines, the Mexican Prosecutor's Office will also open an investigation to establish whether “there is evidence” that supports the US Department of Justice's accusation against Rocha Moya and the other nine officials.
“The Prosecutor's Office of the Republic will begin an investigation to obtain all the information necessary to know if there is evidence that the accusation made by US authorities has the legal basis to request arrest warrants,” said Ulises Lara López, special prosecutor in the Investigation of Relevant Matters and spokesperson for the FGR.
Read alsoViolence between cartels shakes Mexico: cracks in Sheinbaum's strategy?
Information in development...
Related keywords
The content you requested does not exist or is no longer available.
