Attorney Generals of US & Mexico Agree to Work Together on Caro Quintero's Extradition

"Socalj" for Borderland Beat

US Attorney General Merrick B. Garland and FGR Head Alejandro Gertz Manero will work to extradite Caro Quintero to the US.

The Attorney General of the United States and his Mexican counterpart from the Attorney General's Office (FGR) held a call to reaffirm the extradition request of Rafael Caro Quintero recaptured in the cradle of the Sinaloa Cartel last week.

Merrick B. Garland and Alejandro Gertz Manero, head of the FGR, spoke by telephone on July 21, where they discussed sending the capo accused of multiple charges, including the kidnapping and murder of Enrique Camarena Salazar, "Kiki", an agent of the Administration of the Drug Enforcement (DEA) in 1985.

"The two leaders reaffirmed their shared commitment to continue working in unison on the extradition of Caro-Quintero," the Justice Department said in a brief statement.

According to the US authorities, the talk between the two officials took place during the afternoon. This is the first official communication reported after Caro Quintero was made available to the ministerial authorities and was notified of the extradition request for crimes charged in the US.

In addition to thanking the arrest led by the Secretary of the Mexican Navy (Semar), Garland reiterated his condolences to relatives of the 14 sailors who died after the crash of a helicopter in which they were traveling after participating in the operation to find the Narco of drug traffickers in Choix, Sinaloa.

"Attorney General Garland offered his condolences to the families and loved ones of the Mexican military who gave their lives in the service of their country last week," added the US official about the alleged accident on July 15 in a corn field in Los Mochis.

According to the Department of Justice, the call with Gertz Manero was also to continue in the line of binational collaboration for cases that are committed on both sides of Mexico and the United States, in order to find those responsible for various crimes.

"They are committed to continuing to build on a successful collaboration in criminal investigations and prosecutions of cross-border crimes," concluded the Merrick B. Garland press office.

The FGR has not issued any further comments on the communication between the officials. Nor has it reported on the judicial process that awaits the person who was a founder of the Guadalajara Cartel. 

According to reports, the entire process will be reserved, under the previous judicial system. The completed order is for extradition purposes, after releasing the accused in 2013 for a justified appeal in the courts of Guadalajara that was then rejected by the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation in 2015.

The DEA indicated that the recapture of Caro Quintero was a prolonged collaboration between the security institutions headed by the DEA. But the United States Ambassador in Mexico, Ken Salazar, as well as Mexican President AMLO tried to curb those attributions leaked to the press and reiterated that the credit belonged to Semar.

Garland's call to Gertz Manero comes after the sister of the "Narco de Narcos" obtained an injunction so that her family member would not be transferred from the prison where he is located in the maximum security prison of the Altiplano, State of Mexico. The lawsuit charges that the authorities did not follow the extradition procedure and a legal battle is expected before the capo is sent to the country that has requested him for 37 years, when he was arrested in Costa Rica, he spent 28 years in prison and managed to free the prison until last July 15.

UPDATED

U.S. Attorney General Merrick B. Garland spoke by phone with Mexico’s Secretary of Foreign Affairs Marcelo Ebrard Casaubon. The two leaders previously met in Mexico City during the first U.S.-Mexico High-Level Security Dialogue (HLSD). During today’s call, Attorney General Garland expressed his gratitude to Secretary Ebrard and the Government of Mexico for successfully arresting Rafael Caro-Quintero. The Attorney General also offered his condolences to the families and loved ones of the Mexican servicemembers who gave their lives in service to their country last week. The two leaders reaffirmed their shared commitment to working expeditiously on the extradition of Caro-Quintero, who is wanted in the United States on a number of criminal charges, including his alleged involvement in the kidnapping and murder of Drug Enforcement Administration Special Agent Enrique “Kiki” Camarena in 1985.

Source DOJ, Infobae, DOJ