Mexico requested evidence from the United States after the Department of Justice accuse the governor of Sinaloa, Ruben Rocha Moyaand nine other officials with alleged ties to the cartel Sinaloain a case that includes drug trafficking and trafficking crimes of weapons, and which, according to the Foreign Ministry, was presented without evidence in the extradition requests.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs reported that it received requests for provisional arrest for extradition purposes, but noted that the documents do not contain evidence, so it will send a diplomatic removal to the United States Embassy for the way in which the accusation was made public, considering that it contravenes international treaties.
The Prosecutor’s Office Sinaloa indicated that any action must be determined by the Attorney General’s Office and reiterated that in Mexico the principle of presumption of innocence governs, so no person can be considered responsible without a competent judicial resolution.
“Nothing is going to happen”; the words of Governor Rubén Rocha Moya after being accused by the United States of links to drug trafficking.
Via @Radio_Formula pic.twitter.com/YUrMUKVyTb
— Joaquín López-Dóriga (@lopezdoriga) April 29, 2026
Accusations of drug trafficking and weapons
The United States Department of Justice accuses officials of having protected operations of the Sinaloa cartel, providing sensitive information and allowing the transfer of drugs to that country in exchange for million-dollar bribes, particularly in coordination with the Los Chapitos faction.
Among those named are Senator Enrique Inzunza Cázarez, the mayor of Culiacán, Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil; the former Secretary of Public Security of Sinaloa, Gerardo Mérida Sánchez, and other state and security officials.
🚨The governor of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya, would face life imprisonment in the US on charges of conspiracy to import narcotics and possession of high-powered weapons.
👉In the same case, the senator of Morena Enrique Inzunza Cazárez and the mayor of Culiacán, Juan de Dios… pic.twitter.com/sAlqvtUssE
— Azucena Uresti (@azucenau) April 29, 2026
Governor of Sinaloa and nine other current and former Mexican officials charged with drug trafficking and weapons crimes https://t.co/L7RTc9y0VY
— US Embassy in Mexico (@USEmbassyMEX) April 29, 2026
Officials reject accusations
Rocha Moya “categorically and absolutely” rejected the accusations and stated that they lack veracity and foundation. He also assured that it is an “attack” on him and the political movement he is part of.
I categorically and absolutely reject the accusations made against me by the Federal Prosecutor’s Office of the Southern District of New York, since they lack any truth or foundation. And this will be demonstrated, with all forcefulness, at the appropriate time.
This attack is not only…
— Rubén Rocha Moya (@rochamoya_) April 29, 2026
The mayor of Culiacán, Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil, also denied the allegations and maintained that he has acted in accordance with the law in the exercise of his functions.
I reject the allegations that have been made known; They have no foundation. In my life I have always acted in accordance with the law and with responsibility in public service.
From Culiacán we continue working, serving people and delivering every day.
— Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil (@JuandDiosGamez) April 29, 2026
Leaders of the ruling party supported the presumption of innocence of those accused and asked to respect the legal framework, while legislators and opposition leaders described the case as serious, demanded in-depth investigations and requested the dismissal of the officials involved.
Context of violence in Sinaloa
The accusation It occurs in a context of violence in Sinaloa, derived from internal disputes of the cartel after the arrest of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada in the United States in 2024, which has intensified clashes between factions of the criminal group.
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