While El Chapo tries to get some sort of leniency with his life sentence, a Mexican federal official who worked with him is getting closer to trial as jury selection is ongoing in Brooklyn. Genaro Garcia Luna served as Secretary of Public Security from 2006 until 2012. At that time, it is alleged that he played a significant role in the Sinaloa Cartel’s growth at the time by looking the other way during its activities.
Jury Selection Begins in Brooklyn Trial of Mexican Federal Official Alleged to Have Taken Bribes from El Chapo
Prior to his position as Secretary of Public Security, Luna was the Director of the Federal Investigations Agency for eight years before it was replaced by the Federal Ministerial Police in 2009. During that period, Guzman was on the run in his first escape. According to the Department of Justice, Luna used his positions in national law enforcement to facilitate Guzman’s criminal enterprise:
“From 2001 to 2012, while occupying high-ranking law enforcement positions in the Mexican government, Garcia Luna received millions of dollars in bribes from the Sinaloa Cartel in exchange for providing protection for its drug trafficking activities.”
After two escapes Guzman was eventually arrested in 2016 and extradited to the U.S in 2019. General Garcia Luna’s name came up when an associate of El Chapo testified to bribing him $3 million twice. In December 2019, he was nabbed in Dallas, Texas on bribery charges tied to the Sinaloa Cartel. The Mexican government also wants Luna for similar offenses.
Luna has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
