A Mexican governor recently indicted by the United States on drug trafficking charges appeared in court for the first time Tuesday to be questioned by Mexican federal prosecutors.
In late April, the U.S. Department of Justice charged Sinaloa Governor Ruben Rocha Moya and nine others with working with the Sinaloa cartel to distribute “significant quantities” of drugs into the United States.
The indictment marks the first time the United States has disclosed charges against a sitting Mexican politician.
“I have the firm determination to respond to any call made to me by the investigative authorities whenever they deem it necessary,” Rocha Moya wrote on X. He said he had met with officials from the Attorney General’s Office in Culiacán, Sinaloa.
“I will not stop fighting for truth to prevail,” he added.
The governor was not seen entering or leaving the prosecutor’s office.
Rocha Moya, 76, belongs to President Claudia Sheinbaum’s ruling Morena party.
Rocha Moya appeared to reaffirm his loyalty to Scheinbaum in his
In early May, Rocha Moya said he would “temporarily step away” from the governorship to deal with the allegations.
Mexican federal prosecutors on Saturday requested a meeting with Rocha Moya, who is also a close ally of former President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador.
Culiacan Mayor Juan de Dios Gamez Mendivil and Sinaloa Deputy Prosecutor Damaso Castro were also questioned on Tuesday, both of whom were charged along with Rocha Moya and have since remained in office.
The United States has requested extradition as part of the case against Rocha Moya and others, and the Mexican government has said it will comply if the United States provides “irrefutable” evidence to support the charges.
Sheinbaum insists her administration will not protect any politician with ties to organized crime.
The accusations, a sore point in U.S.-Mexico relations, were made shortly after two CIA officers were reportedly killed during an anti-drug operation in the Mexican state of Chihuahua in mid-April.
Japan Post Office/National Bank
This article was generated from automated news agency feeds without modifications to the text.
