Mexico to investigate Sinaloa Governor!
Mexico City, Apr 29 (EFE).-
Mexico’s state prosecutor said Wednesday it would open an investigation to determine whether there is “probative evidence” supporting an accusation by the U.S. Department of Justice against the governor of the state of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya, and nine other officials over alleged ties to drug trafficking and weapons possession.
“The Attorney General’s Office will initiate an investigation to gather all the information necessary to determine whether there are probative elements indicating that the accusation made by U.S. authorities has the legal basis required to seek arrest warrants,” said Ulises Lara López, special prosecutor for investigations of major cases and spokesman for the FGR.
He also emphasized that under Mexican law, an arrest warrant requires “presenting evidence indicating the possibility that a person committed a crime,” and that under the bilateral treaty, “extradition will be granted only if the evidence is deemed sufficient.”
Lara added that any request for provisional detention or extradition from the U.S. government to Mexico must not be disclosed or made public, as “occurred in this particular case,” in which the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York publicized the charges against the 10 Sinaloa officials.
“Making such information public for purposes other than those provided by law could undermine the confidential nature of criminal proceedings in the United States and run counter to the procedural rules governing them,” he said.
He further noted that Mexican law requires — particularly in the case of governors and senators — the initiation of an impeachment-style proceeding to obtain a declaration lifting procedural immunity for the public officials named.
The FGR’s statement came hours after the Justice Department announced formal charges against Rocha Moya and nine other senior Sinaloa officials on drug trafficking and weapons offenses, in a case that links them in particular to the faction known as Los Chapitos.
Those implicated allegedly protected cartel operations, facilitated the flow of sensitive information and allowed drugs to be trafficked into the United States in exchange for multi-million-dollar bribes.
Among those charged are former Sinaloa public security secretary Gerardo Mérida Sánchez; the mayor of Culiacán, Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil; and the former commander of Culiacán’s municipal police, Juan Valenzuela Millán.
In posts on social media, Rocha Moya “categorically” denied the accusations, as did Mayor Gámez Mendívil, who is known to be a close associate of the governor. EFE
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