"Gerardo Merida Sanchez, 66, who served as Sinaloa's public security secretary from September 2023 to December 2024, was arrested in Arizona on May 11 before being transferred to New York. He is reportedly due to appear in federal court in Manhattan on Friday and is currently being held at a federal detention facility in Brooklyn."
"Merida Sanchez and former Sinaloa Governor Ruben Rocha were both charged in an indictment unsealed in Manhattan federal court on April 29, accusing them of conspiring with leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel to import large quantities of narcotics into the United States in exchange for political support and bribes."
"According to the indictment, US prosecutors said Merida Sanchez accepted more than $100,000 in monthly cash bribes from Los Chapitos, a powerful faction of the cartel led by the sons of jailed drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzman, in exchange for protecting the group's operations. Authorities allege he used his position to shield the group's drug trafficking operations by ordering law enforcement officers not to arrest Los Chapitos members while targeting rival criminal groups instead."
"Prosecutors also accuse Merida Sanchez of leaking sensitive intelligence to the cartel, including advance warning about investigations and planned raids on drug laboratories and safehouses. In one instance in 2023, authorities said he alerted the group ahead of at least 10 raids, allowing cartel members to move personnel, drugs and equipment before security forces arrived."
Gerardo Merida Sanchez, 66, a former public security secretary in Mexico’s Sinaloa state, was taken into US custody after an arrest in Arizona on May 11 and transfer to New York. He is being held in a federal detention facility in Brooklyn and is scheduled to appear in federal court in Manhattan. Federal court records and unsealed materials allege he conspired with Sinaloa Cartel leaders to import narcotics into the United States in exchange for political support and bribes. Prosecutors allege he accepted more than $100,000 in monthly cash bribes from Los Chapitos and used his position to protect cartel operations by directing law enforcement to avoid arresting Los Chapitos members while targeting rivals. Authorities also allege he leaked intelligence and warned the cartel ahead of raids, including at least 10 raids in 2023. The charges expand US investigations to include political figures.
#sinaloa-cartel #us-federal-charges #public-security-corruption #los-chapitos #narcotics-trafficking
Read at www.aljazeera.com
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