Mexico has charged former Chihuahua attorney general Cesar Jauregui with treason over allegations that he allowed United States agents to take part in an anti-drug operation without federal approval.
The case centres on the country’s strict rules governing foreign forces on Mexican territory and has highlighted longstanding sensitivities over US involvement in Mexico.
Under Mexican law, the federal government must authorise the activities of foreign personnel in the country. The authorities began examining whether those rules had been followed after two US agents and two Mexican law-enforcement officials died in a car crash on 19 April.
News reports, citing anonymous sources, said the US agents had been working with state officers to destroy a drug laboratory in Chihuahua. Media reports identified them as members of the Central Intelligence Agency, although their role has not been established in court.
Jauregui initially rejected claims that foreign personnel had taken part in a drug raid. In a statement issued on 20 April, he said US instructors had been nearby for a drone-training session before asking to join a convoy of Mexican officers travelling back to the airport.
“It is worth explaining what happened, in order to clarify the facts that are causing some confusion,” Jauregui said at the time. He resigned as Chihuahua’s attorney general later that month.
Mexico’s federal attorney general, Ernestina Godoy, has since accused him of allowing foreign agents to participate in operations on Mexican soil without informing federal officials first.
A judge has ordered Jauregui to remain in pre-trial detention while the court considers whether there is enough evidence for a criminal case to proceed.
Mexico’s sovereignty at the centre of treason case
Analysts say the treason offence is vaguely defined in Mexican law and broadly covers conduct that damages the country’s sovereignty for the benefit of a foreign power or organisation.
Convictions are rare. The last widely recognised case was in 1867, when Emperor Maximilian was court-martialled and executed for crimes against Mexico.
The prosecution comes as President Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration co-operates with the United States on crime and insecurity while opposing direct US collaboration with Mexican states without federal authorisation.
After the April crash, Ms Sheinbaum said her government had not known that US agents were involved in a drug operation in Chihuahua. “Evidently, the military didn’t know there were people participating who weren’t Mexican citizens,” she told reporters, calling for an investigation into whether constitutional and national security rules had been respected.
Mexico’s constitution requires Senate approval for the presence of foreign troops in the country. Concerns over sovereignty have intensified since Donald Trump returned to the US presidency for a second term and suggested that Washington could take unilateral military action against Mexican drug cartels.
Jauregui is a member of Mexico’s conservative National Action Party, while Sheinbaum leads the left-wing Morena party.
