According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, the Sinaloa Cartel is one of the most violent criminal organizations in the world and has turned Sinaloa into the geographic center of the global narcotics trade. Now, the governor and other officials of Mexico’s Sinaloa state stand accused of working with the Sinaloa Cartel to move a bunch of illegal narcotics into the United States.
The Cartel and Its Factions
The indictment first sketches how the Sinaloa Cartel is allegedly built and how it operates. From its base in Sinaloa, the Cartel is said to work with cocaine producers in Colombia and Venezuela, other traffickers, and corrupt politicians across Central and South America, while relying on precursor chemical manufacturers in China and elsewhere to move large quantities of illegal narcotics into the United States.
According to prosecutors, the Cartel formed in the 1990s, with Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán becoming its most powerful leader by around 2008, alongside factions led by Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and Juan José “El Azul” Esparragoza. After El Chapo’s arrests and extradition, his sons Iván, Jesús Alfredo, and Ovidio Guzmán, together with El Mayo, allegedly stepped in as leaders, and the organization later splintered into competing factions, with the Chapitos faction emerging as the most powerful.
In recent years, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) has arrested and brought several Cartel leaders to the United States, including Ovidio in 2023 and El Mayo in 2024, leaving two Chapitos brothers and El Mayo’s son allegedly heading rival factions. Against that backdrop, the indictment then turns to the current and former Mexican officials it claims helped keep the system running.
Ten Officials and a Tilted Election
The indictment names ten Sinaloa officials who allegedly joined a conspiracy with the Sinaloa Cartel and took millions in bribes. Prosecutors say Governor Rubén Rocha Moya won office with Chapitos support, then helped install corrupt allies and protect the faction’s drug trafficking. The document then drills into how that support allegedly played out, starting with the 2021 governor’s race and continuing after Rocha took office.
During the 2021 governor’s race, the indictment says Rocha ally Enrique Díaz Vega met with Chapitos leaders and handed over opponents’ names and home addresses. Prosecutors claim he did this so the Chapitos could threaten those rivals and push them out of the race altogether. To lock in Rocha’s win, Chapitos leaders allegedly told their people and local citizens to vote for him and sent sicarios (hitmen) to steal opposition ballots on election day. Using Díaz’s list, cartel members allegedly kidnapped Rocha’s opponents and intimidated them into withdrawing from the race.
According to the indictment, Sinaloa State Police commanders then ordered officers to stay away from polling places, even if they saw crimes or got emergency calls. Officers allegedly received calls about threats at toll booths and ballot box thefts in Culiacán, Mazatlán, Navolato, and Elota, saw armed men hitting voters with paddles, and still did nothing. Once Rocha was in office, prosecutors say, the relationship between his administration and the Cartel allegedly deepened.
After Rocha took office, the indictment says he and Secretary General Enrique Inzunza Cázarez met with cartel leaders, including the Chapitos, to discuss the support they had given his campaign. Prosecutors allege Rocha agreed to secure Chapitos influence over the Sinaloa State Police, while Chapitos members worked with officers like José Antonio “Tornado” Dionisio Hipólito and Juan “Juanito” Valenzuela Millán to target rivals. As the governor of Sinaloa, Rocha has allegedly allowed the Chapitos to exert near-total control over key state and local law enforcement agencies. The indictment then zooms in on specific officials it claims were on the take.
Alleged Bribe Structure and Police on the Payroll
According to the indictment, Dámaso Castro Zaavedra has served as Deputy Attorney General in Sinaloa since October 2021 and allegedly received monthly bribes from the Chapitos. In return, he allegedly protected Chapitos members from arrest and tipped them off about U.S.‑backed operations targeting their labs and personnel, giving them time to move evidence.
The indictment says Marco Antonio Almanza Avilés led the Investigative Police from roughly 2017 to November 2022 and allegedly took bribes while letting the Chapitos operate freely. During that period, he allegedly signed off on arrest warrants for the Chapitos’ enemies and allowed chemical shipments for fentanyl production to pass through Sinaloa. His successor, Alberto Jorge “Cholo” Contreras Núñez, allegedly held the same post from November 2022 to about February 2026, took bribes, and kept the faction’s operations running. Prosecutors say Contreras went further by ordering the release of Chapitos members who had been arrested.
Gerardo Mérida Sánchez is identified as Sinaloa’s Secretary of Public Security from around September 2023 until his resignation in December 2024, overseeing the State Police and its director. The indictment alleges Mérida also received monthly bribes and warned the Chapitos before drug lab raids, so they could move drugs and equipment out of harm’s way. Beyond these top‑level figures, prosecutors highlight how the Cartel allegedly captured on‑the‑ground policing.
The indictment says State Police commander José Antonio “Tornado” Dionisio Hipólito and Culiacán Mayor Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil took Chapitos bribes and protected their operations. It also alleges Municipal Police commander Juan “Juanito” Valenzuela Millán and dozens of officers were on the cartel payroll, using police resources to traffic drugs and, in one 2023 case, help kidnap DEA source Alexander Meza León and relatives, some of whom were then tortured and killed. Finally, the indictment explains what the Cartel allegedly did with this protection and what exactly these officials are charged with.
Drug Shipments, Methods, and Charges
According to the indictment, the Sinaloa Cartel has allegedly made billions trafficking illegal narcotics into the United States. Prosecutors say it takes advantage of Sinaloa’s location, regional drug routes, and precursor chemicals shipped from abroad.
They describe a mix of smuggling methods, from hidden compartments and commercial vehicles to tunnels and clandestine flights, plus several large drug seizures in recent years. Count One charges all ten defendants with a narcotics importation conspiracy, with additional counts for firearms and, for some, kidnapping tied to the October 2023 abductions.
For now, though, these remain unproven allegations, and every defendant is presumed innocent unless and until the government proves otherwise at trial. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum also announced that the Mexican government would conduct its own investigation into the allegations after receiving extradition requests for the 10 officials tied to the case. After the U.S. government’s announcement, President Sheinbaum said that if Mexican prosecutors did not receive sufficient evidence to support the charges, she would not agree to extradite the officials.
Related Resources
- Accused Mexican Drug Kingpin Retains Attorney Who Represented His 'Turncoat' Son (FindLaw’s Practice of Law)
- International and Domestic Law on Attacking Cartels Outside of the U.S. (FindLaw’s Law and Daily Life)
- Drug Cartels and Organized Crime (FindLaw’s Learn About the Law)
