Mexico hands over 26 accused drug traffickers to the U.S.
The Mexican government transferred 26 people wanted on drug trafficking charges to the US justice system on Tuesday, in an operation coordinated with authorities.
Photo of SHTTEFAN in Unsplash
The Mexican government on Tuesday transferred 26 people wanted on drug trafficking charges to the U.S. justice system in a coordinated operation with security authorities from both countries.
Transfer for security and at Washington's request
According to a joint statement from the Federal Security Secretariat and the Attorney General's Office (FGR), the inmates were being held in various prisons across the country and "represented a permanent risk to public safety."
The surrender was made at the request of the United States Department of Justice, which pledged not to seek the death penalty in legal proceedings.
The transfer was carried out through a special procedure that avoids ordinary extradition procedures, which expedited the release of the accused. Claudia Sheinbaum's government argued that This measure seeks to prevent drug traffickers from regaining their freedom thanks to injunctions granted by allegedly corrupt judges.
In the context of bilateral tensions
The delivery comes as Mexico and the United States are negotiating a new security agreement focused on combating drug and arms trafficking. President Donald Trump's administration has increased pressure on Mexico to curb the smuggling of fentanyl into the United States.
By February, Mexico had already sent 29 of its most notorious drug lords, including Rafael Caro Quintero, accused of murdering DEA agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena in 1985.
The Mérida Initiative as a framework for collaboration
Cooperation between the two countries against drug trafficking is primarily carried out under the Mérida Initiative, a security pact established in 2008 to dismantle cartels, curb drug trafficking, and reduce associated violence.
Participating agencies include the U.S. State Department, the DEA, the FBI, and the CIA, as well as the Ministry of National Defense and the Mexican Navy, among others.
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