MEXICO CITY (CN) - In her morning press conference Thursday, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said she will not protect politicians but demands irrefutable proof of drug trafficking crimes as charged by the U.S. Department of Justice against current Sinaloa governor Ruben Rocha Moya and nine others in a bombshell escalation of tensions between the countries.
"We are not going to cover anyone who has committed a crime, however, if there is no clear evidence, it is clear that the purpose of these charges by the Department of Justice is political," Sheinbaum said.
Sheinbaum said she and Rocha Moya spoke on the telephone Wednesday, when the president told the governor that there is nothing to fear and that everything will proceed according to the rule of law.
"I told him what I'm stating here: If there's nothing, there's nothing to fear, nothing. There has to be evidence. Imagine a citizen who doesn't hold elected office, arrested without evidence-no, right? It's the same for a governor; in any case, there would first have to be impeachment proceedings if any evidence were found against him, all under the rule of law," said Sheinbaum.
Sheinbaum also added she would treat any politician of any political party the same way.
"I'm going to tell you, I would act exactly the same way if it were a governor from the PRI, the PAN, the Citizen Movement. Imagine that a request for extradition or provisional detention for the purpose of extradition came to a governor of another party without any evidence. Because it's from another party I'm going to act differently? No," she said.
Sheinbaum also defended Sinaloa against stigmatization.
"The people of Sinaloa are a great people, this stigmatization that has been made of Sinaloa is very serious," she said."It's a great state, it's the breadbasket of Mexico, and its citizens require protection right now."
The indictment, unsealed in the Southern District of New York on Wednesday, accuses 10 Mexican officials - including the Sinaloa governor, Culiacan mayor and high-level police - of working with and protecting the Chapitos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel while they trafficked massive amounts of fentanyl, cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine into the U.S. in exchange for millions of dollars in drug money and political support from the cartel.
The indictment shows photos of handwritten lists of bribes supposedly paid by members of the criminal organization to government officials.
The Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs released a statement on Wednesday following the U.S. indictment and request for extradition and provisional arrest of the 10 officials charged, which states that the documents sent by the U.S. embassy lack sufficient evidence for arrest but the case will be referred to the Attorney General's Office.
"The Attorney General's Office will initiate an investigation to obtain all the information necessary to know if there is evidence that establishes the probability that the accusation made by U.S. authorities has the legal basis to request arrest warrants," Attorney General Office spokesperson Ulises Lara Lopez said in a press conference Wednesday.
He added that in the case of Rocha Moya, a sitting governor, an impeachment trial would be necessary before submitting a detention request before a judge.
"In the case of governors and senators, it is required to initiate an impeachment proceeding to obtain a declaration that removes procedural immunity," Lara Lopez said.
Rocha Moya wrote on social media Wednesday that he categorically denies all accusations by the U.S. government and called the charges politically motivated.
"This attack is not only on me but to the Fourth Transformation movement, to its emblematic leaders, and to the Mexicans who represent that cause," he added.
The fourth transformation is a Morena party political promise that originated with former President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.
Senator and Institutional Revolutionary Party president Alejandro Moreno Cardenas demanded the immediate resignation of Rocha Moya on Wednesday in a lengthy statement on social media, calling the indictment an international crisis.
"The United States government has announced a formal indictment involving Governor Ruben Rocha Moya and Senator Enrique Inzunza, along with other current and former officials in their inner circle, for alleged links to drug trafficking, corruption, and collaboration with organized crime. This is not a minor accusation or an internal matter, but an international case that places Sinaloa and Mexico in a crisis of credibility," he wrote.
Criticisms of Rocha Moya began following the capture of Sinaloa cartel leader Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada and ensuing turf war in Sinaloa beginning in September 2024.
A statement made by Zambada following his capture by rival Sinaloa cartel faction and subsequent hand-off to U.S. authorities states that he was on his way to meet Rocha Moya to settle a dispute between him and former Culiacan municipal president and congressmen Hector Melesio Cuen Ojeda, who was murdered on the night of the meeting.
Sheinbaum, president-elect at the time, with then-President Lopez Obrador present, issued her support for Rocha Moya on Aug. 10, 2024, the same day Zambada's letter was made public, and referenced what she called the stigmatization of the state of Sinaloa.
The recent charges against the 10 Mexican officials have strained already weak diplomatic relations between Mexico and the U.S.
An unauthorized CIA operation this month provoked an ongoing political firestorm in Mexico, including the recent resignation of the Chihuahua state attorney general and, in a separate event on April 20, the U.S. Department of State revoked 75 U.S. visas they claimed are family members or close personal or business associates of persons linked to the Sinaloa Cartel.
Courthouse News reporter William Savinar is based in Mexico City.
Source: Courthouse News Service
