The US Attorney’s Office reported that Genaro Garca Luna, the former public security secretary of Mexico and the mastermind of that nation’s bloody and protracted drug war, was found guilty on Tuesday in federal court in New York of accepting bribes from the drug cartels he had promised to fight.
The former director of Mexico’s equivalent of the FBI from 2006 to 2012, the former secretary of public security, was found guilty on five counts of continuing a criminal enterprise by a federal jury in Brooklyn. According to the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, the counts included making false claims, conspiring to import cocaine, and conspiring to distribute and possess cocaine with the purpose to distribute it.
The 54-year-old Garca Luna exhibited no emotion as the verdict was read. He once momentarily turned to face his wife, daughter, and son while placing his hands over his heart.
He is the highest-ranking Mexican official to have ever been tried in the US.
His four-week trial was presided over by US District Judge Brian M. Cogan, who also presided over the trial of former Sinaloa Cartel leader Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman. After 15 days of hearing from almost 30 witnesses, the Eastern District of New York jury rendered their decision.
Garca Luna had entered a not-guilty plea to every accusation. Outside of court, defence lawyer Cesar de Castro stated that a decision on whether to appeal the verdict will be made after sentencing. He had contended that the prosecution’s case was based on the evidence of merciless criminals.
On June 27, Garcia Luna will be sentenced. He could receive a minimum of 20 years in prison and a maximum of life in prison.
Breon Peace, US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, stated: “Garcia Luna, who once stood at the top of law enforcement in Mexico, will now live the rest of his days having been exposed as a traitor to his country and to the honest members of law enforcement who risked their lives to dismantle drug cartels.”
Mientras en EU juzgan a Genaro García Luna, en México un Tribunal Colegiado ordenó descongelar cuentas de su esposa, quien es investigada por su participación en lavado de dinero, compra de inmuebles y la sociedad en empresas que obtuvieron 745 mdd del presupuesto público.
— Jesús Ramírez Cuevas (@JesusRCuevas) February 22, 2023
Jesus Ramirez Cuevas, a spokesperson for Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, praised the verdict on Twitter: “The crimes against our people will never be forgotten.”
