By Ryan Morgan
The governor of the Mexican state of Sinaloa has announced a leave of absence as he faces a federal indictment in the United States on allegations of aiding the Sinaloa cartel.
On April 29, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York announced it had obtained an indictment against Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha Moya and nine other current and former Mexican officials for alleged drug trafficking and weapons offenses.
Moya, 76, was specifically charged with narcotics importation conspiracy, unlawful possession of machine guns, and conspiracy to unlawfully possess machine guns. If convicted, Moya would face a mandatory minimum sentence of 40 years in prison.
The Sinaloa governor issued a statement on May 1, saying he will temporarily step down as the investigation plays out.
“I say it clearly and forcefully, the accusations that have been made against me are false and malicious,” Moya said.
“I can look my people and my family in the eye because I have not betrayed them and I never will, and I will demonstrate that firmly when the justice institutions of our country require it.”
Moya’s announcement was made on the same day the Mexican Attorney General’s office announced it had received an arrest and extradition request from the United States. The Mexican attorney general’s office said it has yet to see sufficient evidence to proceed with the arrest and extradition of the defendants, and is requesting additional supporting information from the U.S. government.
Moya said his decision to step down would facilitate Mexican authorities’ investigative efforts.
An indictment alleges a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel, known as Los Chapitos, stole ballots and intimidated opposition candidates to help Moya win the governor’s election in 2021.
In exchange for their support, Moya is alleged to have helped install other Chapitos-aligned individuals—including his various codefendants—in positions throughout the state and local government of Sinaloa. Together, Moya and these other current and former officials are accused of abusing their authority to facilitate cartel narcotics trafficking operations, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
The indictment alleges Moya and his co-defendants together “knowingly possessed firearms, and aided and abetted the use, carrying, and possession of firearms” in furtherance of this drug trafficking effort.
Last year, the U.S. federal government designated the Sinaloa cartel a foreign terrorist organization.
“The Sinaloa cartel is not just trafficking deadly drugs; it is a designated terrorist organization that relies on corruption and bribery to drive violence and profit,” Terrance Cole, the administrator of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), said on April 30.
“This indictment exposes a deliberate effort to undermine public institutions and put American lives at risk.”
Another defendant, former Culiacan police commander Juan Valanzuela Milian, faces two additional charges in connection with the kidnapping and death of a confidential source for the DEA named Alexander Meza Leon, and one of Leon’s relatives.
