Indictment Names Senator, Senior Sinaloa Officials and Police in Sinaloa Cartel Corruption Case

This week, the U.S. government announced charges against nearly a dozen Mexican politicians and officials who, according to an indictment filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York, are linked to a corruption network tied to the Sinaloa cartel and the Los Chapitos faction, led by the sons of Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán.

The most prominent figure named in the indictment, published April 29, is Sinaloa Gov. Rubén Rocha Moya, who prosecutors allege received support from Los Chapitos to win the governorship and, once in office, allowed violence to continue unchecked while protecting cartel leaders and their drug trafficking operations.

Among those charged are several senior and former members of the Sinaloa government. One of them is Enrique Inzunza Cazárez, who currently serves as a senator and previously was Sinaloa's secretary general.

Inzunza is charged with narcotics importation conspiracy, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices. He faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 40 years in prison and could receive a life sentence.

According to the indictment, the defendants operated at multiple levels of government and law enforcement in Sinaloa, abusing positions of trust and authority to help facilitate the operations of Los Chapitos.

Culiacán Mayor Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil is also charged with conspiracy to import narcotics, possession of machine guns and explosive devices, and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices.

U.S. prosecutors also allege that members of intelligence and law enforcement agencies were involved. Among those charged is Gerardo Mérida Sánchez, Sinaloa's former public security secretary, who, according to Animal Político, was removed from his post in December 2024 by Rocha Moya, who said at the time the state needed to "reorganize."

The April 29 indictment alleges each defendant participated in a "corrupt and violent drug trafficking conspiracy," assisting the Sinaloa cartel and Los Chapitos by shielding cartel leaders from investigation, arrest and prosecution.

Prosecutors say the alleged corruption extended to local law enforcement agencies, including the Sinaloa State Police, the state attorney general's investigative police and the Culiacán municipal police, which they accuse of protecting drug trafficking operations in exchange for millions of dollars in bribes.

Among those charged is José Antonio Dionisio Hipólito, also known as "Tornado," the former deputy director of the Sinaloa State Police, who is also accused of conspiracy to import narcotics.

Juan Valenzuela Milán, also known as "Juanito," was also charged with conspiracy to import narcotics. The former high-ranking commander of the Culiacán municipal police is additionally accused of offenses tied to his alleged role in the kidnappings of a DEA source and the source's relative, which resulted in their deaths.