A former top security official in Mexico’s Sinaloa state, Gerardo Merida Sanchez, has been taken into custody in the United States over allegations of collaboration with the Sinaloa Cartel, according to unsealed federal court documents.
Merida Sanchez, 66, who served as Sinaloa’s public security secretary from September 2023 to December 2024, was arrested in Arizona on May 11 before being transferred to New York, where he is expected to appear in court.
He is currently being held at a federal detention facility in Brooklyn as part of an ongoing US federal investigation into alleged cartel-linked corruption involving political and security officials.
US prosecutors allege that he conspired with leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel to facilitate large-scale drug trafficking operations into the United States in exchange for financial bribes and political support.
According to the indictment, he allegedly received monthly cash payments from a faction of the cartel known as Los Chapitos, led by the sons of imprisoned drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.
Authorities further claim that he used his position to protect cartel operations by instructing law enforcement not to arrest members of the group while targeting rival criminal organisations instead.
He is also accused of leaking sensitive security intelligence, including advance warnings about planned raids on drug laboratories and safehouses, allowing cartel members to evade law enforcement operations.
The indictment also implicates former Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha, who has denied the allegations and described them as politically motivated, temporarily stepping aside to defend himself.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has stated that her administration will not shield anyone involved in criminal activity, while also suggesting that some US actions may have political undertones.
The case comes amid a broader escalation in US anti-cartel policy, with reports indicating increased use of terrorism-related charges against individuals linked to drug trafficking networks.
