Overview
- Federal prosecutors in New York unsealed the indictment Wednesday, charging Gov. Rubén Rocha Moya and nine current or former Sinaloa officials with helping traffic fentanyl, cocaine, heroin and meth into the United States.
- The filing alleges cartel support for Rocha’s 2021 campaign, including kidnappings, intimidation of rivals and stolen ballots to tilt the vote in his favor.
- None of the defendants are in U.S. custody, and Mexico says the U.S. extradition packets arrived without attached evidence and have been sent to the Attorney General’s Office for review.
- President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday that prosecutors will act only with “irrefutable” proof under Mexican law, and Mexican authorities have opened their own investigation into the U.S. claims.
- The charges include narcotics importation conspiracy, possession and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices, and kidnapping resulting in death, and the case centers on the Los Chapitos faction led by El Chapo’s sons in a rare U.S. move against a sitting governor.