Mexico's most controversial politician, Ruben Rocha, goes to ground as cartel questions intensify

Ruben Rocha Moya has not been seen since May 1, when he announced a leave of absence from the governorship of Sinaloa. U.S. authorities accused him and nine collaborators of alleged ties to factions of the Sinaloa cartel. Omar Garcia Harfuch said Rocha Moya is in Sinaloa and is not provided federal security escorts, relying instead on state police while retaining the governorship during the temporary leave. No public sightings have occurred for 19 days. Residents and business leaders demand clarity about corruption, bribery, and protection allegations, linking them to a wave of violence driven by cartel factional conflict. Sinaloa is also facing an economic crisis, including job losses and company closures.

"No one has seen Ruben Rocha Moya since the night of May 1, when he announced in a video that he was requesting a leave of absence from the office of governor of Sinaloa. It was then a holiday, Labor Day, and the politician said he needed to stop working, as if in penance after U.S. authorities accused him and nine of his collaborators of alleged ties to factions of the Sinaloa cartel."

"The governor is in Sinaloa, Omar Garcia Harfuch, the secretary of security for the federal government, said on Wednesday. His location has not been classified; at the moment he is there in his state. Harfuch said Rocha Moya does not have federal security escorts, but that his security circle is made up of state police because he retains the governorship despite his temporary leave of absence."

"Despite Harfuch's remarks, there has been no public sighting of the politician in Sinaloa for 19 days. We want to know first where Rocha is because [the investigation] implies he is going to provide a lot of information. He needs to give clarity to citizens about why we are experiencing what we are experiencing, because he and the others [under suspicion] are the generators of the situation we are involved in, said Martha Reyes, president of the Employers' Confederation of the Mexican Republic in Sinaloa (Coparmex)."

"Reyes explained that Sinaloa is experiencing an economic crisis that has led to the loss of 20,000 jobs and the closure of at least 200 companies in a little more than a year and a half. Ratings agenc"

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