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U.S. authorities revealed they will present cocaine and heroin as evidence against Genaro García Luna during his trial.
According to a letter Seth D. DuCharme, the acting U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, sent to Cesar de Castro, García Luna’s lawyer, prosecutors will present 43.86 kilograms of cocaine, which were seized on May 24, 2012, in Brooklyn, New York; 20.40 kilograms of cocaine seized in Panama on March 18, 2007, and 22 kilograms of cocaine and 4.03 kilograms of heroin seized on July 14, 2009, in New Jersey.
In his letter, DuCharme mentions that the U.S. witness will call experts to testify concerning the forensic analysis of the drugs, as well as regarding the methods used to launder money obtained through drug trafficking.
A hearing is scheduled for July 30.
In early June, New York prosecutors provided evidence to Genaro García Luna’s lawyers, including e-mails, photographs, financial transactions, and intercepted calls.
García Luna, Mexico’s former Security Minister, is charged with three counts of cocaine trafficking conspiracy and one count of making false statements.
According to the U.S. Department of Justice alleges that “In exchange for multimillion-dollar bribes, the defendant allegedly permitted the Sinaloa Cartel to operate with impunity in Mexico.”
Genaro García Luna was arrested in Dallas, Texas, in December 2019. At the time, Richard P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said: “Garcia Luna stands accused of taking millions of dollars in bribes from ‘El Chapo’ Guzman’s Sinaloa Cartel while he controlled Mexico’s Federal Police Force and was responsible for ensuring public safety in Mexico,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue. “Today’s arrest demonstrates our resolve to bring to justice those who help cartels inflict devastating harm on the United States and Mexico, regardless of the positions they held while committing their crimes.”
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, García Luna argued he was part of the vulnerable sector and requested to be released on a USD 2 million bond; however, judge Brian Cogan rejected his petition.
Who is Genaro García Luna?
Former President Felipe Calderón appointed Genaro García Luna as the Public Security Minister in 2006. He also worked for Vicente Fox’s administration.
According to the U.S. indictment and other court filings, from 2001 to 2012, while occupying high-ranking law enforcement positions in the Mexican government, García Luna received millions in bribes from the Sinaloa Cartel in exchange for protection for its drug trafficking activities.
From 2001 to 2005, García Luna led Mexico’s Federal Investigation Agency, and from 2006 to 2012, he served as Mexico’s Security Minister, controlling Mexico’s Federal Police Force. In exchange for the payment of bribes, the Sinaloa Cartel obtained safe passage for its drug shipments, sensitive law enforcement information about investigations into the cartel, and information about rival drug cartels, thereby facilitating the importation of multi‑ton quantities of cocaine and other drugs into the United States.
On two occasions, the cartel allegedly delivered bribe payments to García Luna in briefcases containing between USD 3 million and USD 5 million. According to financial records obtained by the U.S. government, by the time Genaro García Luna relocated to the United States in 2012, he had amassed a personal fortune worth millions of dollars. The explosive claims were made during El Chapo’s trial.
If convicted of the drug conspiracy charge, García Luna faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years and a maximum of life imprisonment.
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