Mexico Won’t Prosecute Former Defense Minister Arrested in U.S.
Mexican authorities said they won’t bring charges against former Defense Minister Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda, whom U.S. authorities arrested last year on drug-trafficking and corruption charges. Following outrage from Mexico, the U.S. charges were dropped and he was sent home. Mexican officials had promised to pursue a thorough investigation (New York Times)
Report: Mexico Deadliest Country in the World for Journalists
A new report by the Committee to Protect Journalists called Mexico the deadliest country for journalists in 2020. Nine journalists were killed in the country this year, accounting for nearly a third of all members of the media killed worldwide (Guardian)
Mexico Restricts Foreign Agents Despite U.S. Criticism
Mexican lawmakers approved legislation restricting foreign law enforcement officers’ activities, drawing censure from the United States. The Donald J. Trump administration argues that the law will hinder bilateral cooperation on issues such as drug trafficking and cartel violence (New York Times)
President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador is expected to sign the legislation, which requires Mexican officials to get permission before meeting with “foreign agents” and to report what was discussed (Washington Post)
Although the legislation does not name the United States, it is seen as a response to the United States’ October arrest of a former Mexican defense minister and is believed to be aimed at the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, which Lopez Obrador and other critics have portrayed as a rogue agency infringing on Mexican sovereignty (Wall Street Journal)
Mexico Becomes Fourth Country to See One Hundred Thousand COVID-19 Deaths
Mexico became the fourth country to report one hundred thousand deaths from COVID-19, after Brazil, India, and the United States. A lack of testing and fear of hospitals has hampered the response to the disease (Associated Press)
U.S. Drops Drug Charges Against Former Mexican Defense Minister
The United States agreed to drop charges against former Mexican defense minister Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda and send him back to Mexico. Cienfuegos was arrested in Los Angeles several weeks ago on drug-related charges, angering Mexican officials who viewed the arrest as a violation of sovereignty that could jeopardize bilateral cooperation. Mexico has not committed to trying him upon his return (Washington Post)
Mexican Complains About Arrest of Former Defense Minister in United States
Foreign minister Marcelo Ebrard said the government has expressed its “profound discontent” with the United States for not consulting Mexican officials before arresting former Mexican defense minister Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda in Los Angeles on drug-related charges (Reuters)
Mexico Requests Evidence Against Former Defense Minister
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has asked U.S. authorities to share all evidence pertaining to the arrest of former Mexican defense minister Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda on drug trafficking charges (Al Jazeera)
Former Mexican Defense Minister Arrested on Drug Charges in United States
Former Mexican defense minister Salvador Cienfuegos Zepeda was arrested in Los Angeles and will face drug and money-laundering charges in the United States. Cienfuegos is the first high-ranking Mexican military official to be arrested in the United States for drug-related corruption (New York Times)
Cartel Leader Captured in Mexico
Police captured Adan Ochoa, known as El Azul, who headed the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel that has been blamed for a surge of violence in Mexico (Reuters)
Mexico’s Former Security Minister Charged With Cartel Connections
Former security minister Genaro Garcia Luna pleaded not guilty to charges connecting him to the Sinaloa drug cartel. Prosecutors allege that he allowed the cartel to operate freely in the country in exchange for millions of dollars in bribes (BBC)
Report: Unidentified Bodies Increase Amid Mexico’s Drug War
Mexican morgues housed 38,891 unidentified bodies in 2019, up from 178 in 2006, when the country’s war on drugs began, according to a report by nongovernmental organization Quinto Elemento Lab. Most have been buried in common graves (Guardian)
Mexico Confirms Murder of Second Journalist in a Week
Mexican authorities announced that a journalist was shot and killed by unidentified attackers in the state of Michoacan, days after another Mexican journalist was killed. Gunmen also attacked the headquarters of a newspaper in Guerrero this week. Mexico is among the deadliest places for media workers, according to watchdog Reporters Without Borders (teleSUR)
Mexico Arrests Cartel Leader
Security forces arrested the alleged leader of the Santa Rosa de Lima Cartel, Jose Antonio Yepez Ortiz, and five other people in an operation that also freed a kidnapped businesswoman. The detention of Yepez Ortiz, whose violent criminal network stole gasoline from the state oil company, is expected to help restore peace in Guanajuato, Mexico’s most violent state (Wall Street Journal)
Mexico City Police Chief Wounded After Assassination Attempt
Mexico City police chief Omar Garcia Harfuch was wounded during an attempted assassination that left three others dead. Harfuch blamed members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) for the attack (El Universal)
Mexican Cartel Delivers Aid to Communities During Pandemic
Photos and videos shared on social media show alleged members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) criminal organization delivering food to poor communities during the pandemic (El Universal)
Gang Clashes in Mexico Continue Amid Pandemic
Many of Mexico’s rival crime factions continued to clash in March and April rather than impose curfews, as some gangs in Brazil and El Salvador have done due to the coronavirus. Nearly two hundred criminal groups are active in Mexico, which saw a record 34,582 homicides last year (Guardian)
Gang Clash in Northern Mexico Kills Nineteen
Nineteen people died in a shootout between the Sinaloa and Juarez drug cartels in Mexico’s northern state of Chihuahua, state prosecutors said (Associated Press)
United States Sanctions Cartel-linked Businesses in Mexico
Washington sanctioned four business for links to the drug cartels Los Cuinis and Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) (State Department)
U.S. authorities announced more than six hundred arrests earlier this week in a probe against CJNG (Hill)
Mexico Increases Cartel Extraditions to the United States
Official data indicates that Mexico has increased extraditions of drug cartel leaders to the United States amidst greater pressure from Washington to enhance bilateral cooperation on anti-crime efforts. Mexico extradited fifty eight individuals in 2019 for prosecution, while the latest data states that as of February 21, thirty suspected cartel members have already been sent to the United States this year (Reuters)
Nine Killed in Gang Violence in Western Mexico
Gunmen allegedly associated with the Jalisco New Generation cartel opened fire on patrons inside an arcade in the city of Uruapan used by the Los Viagra gang, killing nine people (BBC)
Sixty Thousand Disappeared in Mexico Since 2006
Nearly sixty thousand people have disappeared in Mexico since a crackdown on drug cartels began in 2006, Mexican officials announced (Washington Post)
They counted 61,637 disappearances dating back to 1964, a jump from a 2018 estimate of 40,000 disappearances in the same period (New York Times)
Since President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador took office in December 2018, authorities uncovered 873 clandestine burial sites containing more than one thousand bodies, a top official said (Guardian)
Former Mexican Security Chief Arrested on Drug Charges
Former Secretary of Public Security Genaro Garcia Luna was arrested in Texas by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency on charges of taking millions of dollars in bribes from the Sinaloa drug cartel, U.S. prosecutors announced (El Universal)
Trump Suspends Terrorist Designation for Mexican Cartels
U.S. President Donald J. Trump announced he would delay plans to designate Mexican cartels as terrorist organizations. Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said he celebrated his counterpart’s decision (BBC)
Mexico, U.S. Talk Cartels
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador tweeted that he had a “good meeting” with U.S. Attorney General William Barr. The two discussed security after U.S. President Donald J. Trump called for Mexican drug cartels to be labeled terrorist organizations, a suggestion Mexico rejected (Washington Post)
Nearly Twenty Killed in Gunfight Near U.S.-Mexico Border
At least nineteen people were killed in a weekend gun battle between cartels and security forces around forty miles southwest of the U.S.-Mexico border, according to authorities (Washington Post)