According to the Secretariat of Security and Civilian Protection, “this action is part of the bilateral coordination, cooperation, and reciprocity efforts within the framework of respect for the sovereignty of both nations.”
Amid growing pressure from the Trump administration to crack down on fentanyl smuggling or face tariffs, Mexico has extradited 29 suspected drug traffickers to the United States.
Rafael Caro Quintero, the former head of the Guadalajara cartel, is among the 29 prisoners being imprisoned in various jails across the nation. He is wanted by the United States for the 1985 murder of US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena.
Thursday’s action comes after US President Donald Trump designated Mexican drug gangs as Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) in January.
While the Mexican government, led by President Claudia Sheinbaum, is doing everything in its power to ward off drug cartels, Trump has repeatedly threatened to impose tariffs on Mexico in an attempt to pressure it into stepping up efforts to combat them.
“Cartels are terrorist organizations, as President Trump has stated, and this Department of Justice is committed to dismantling cartels and transnational gangs,” said US Attorney General Pam Bondi in a statement.
The government’s Cabinet-level Secretariat of Security and Civilian Protection (SSCP), which oversees public safety and security, issued a statement on the extradition of the well-known offenders and promised to cooperate with the US in exchange for their transfer.
“This action is part of the bilateral coordination, cooperation and reciprocity efforts within the framework of respect for the sovereignty of both nations,” stated the statement.
Working together to combat cartels
Caro Quintero, often known as “El Narco de Narcos” or “The Narco of Narcos,” has avoided US prison for decades due to his influence and role as a co-founder of the Guadalajara gang, which was the most potent drug gang in Latin America in the 1980s.
Since his arrest in 1985, he has been imprisoned in Mexico for 28 years on charges of torturing and killing Camarena.
However, in 2013, a court reversed his 40-year sentence, allowing him to walk free.
Before being apprehended by Mexican authorities in 2022, he resumed his drug trafficking activities. Sheinbaum revealed last week that the United States has been eavesdropping on Mexican cartels using drones as part of a long-running partnership.
Two important members of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the organizations Trump listed as terrorist organizations, were arrested last week, and Mexican officials just announced a number of significant drug recoveries.
