U.S. charges Mexican governor with drug trafficking

The U.S. Justice Department on Wednesday said it charged the current governor of Mexico’s Sinaloa state with conspiracy to import narcotics to the United States. Gov. Rocha Moya is accused of protecting and assisting the Chapitos branch of the Sinaloa Cartel in drug trafficking operations in his state. U.S. authorities allege that the cartel helped him get elected by kidnapping and intimidating other candidates. He also faces related weapons charges in the United States.

The U.S. Justice Department also accused nine other current or former top government and law enforcement officials in Mexico of partnering with the cartel and collectively taking millions in drug money, according to court documents. They are considered legally innocent until proven guilty in court.

U.S. officials alleged that one official who holds a high position in the Sinaloa state attorney general’s office was in the employ of the cartel. The individual allegedly received about $11,000 per month from the cartel in exchange for protecting its members from arrest and informing them of U.S.-backed law enforcement operations, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

A high-level police commander in Mexico is accused of using police officers to help the cartel kidnap a man who cooperated with the U.S. government's Drug Enforcement Administration, along with one of his relatives. Cartel members later tortured and killed the kidnapping victims, according to the Justice Department.

How can the U.S. Justice Department prosecute Mexican officials? The Mexican Office of the Attorney General would investigate the claims and prosecute the officials in accordance with national law if needed, President Claudia Sheinbaum said Thursday. Her government received requests from the Justice Department to extradite the 10 accused officials. But Mexico would carry out an investigation, and possibly a prosecution, within its own jurisdiction first, she said. She promised not to permit foreign intrusion into Mexico’s government and raised the possibility that the accusations were false and politically motivated.

Dig deeper: Read my report on the Justice Department’s participation in an international crackdown on scam centers.