Mica for cartelinsider.com
Operators of the Sinaloa Cartel would have contributed two million dollars to the presidential campaign of Andrés Manuel López Obrador in 2006, according to an investigation published this Tuesday by ProPublica.
This finding emerged from an investigation carried out by the DEA, indicating that major drug traffickers may have directed this sum towards the political campaign of the politician, who is of Tabasco origin, in his first attempt to reach the presidency.
The report, based on interviews with officials from the United States and Mexico, as well as official documents, suggests that money was delivered to campaign operatives in 2006, in exchange for favorable treatment for their illegal operations by the administration of López Obrador, in the event of winning the elections.
It is mentioned that evidence arising from the collaboration of a former campaign agent and a drug informant indicates that one of López Obrador’s closest collaborators accepted the deal, although it is not mentioned whether AMLO was aware of this agreement or even if he was aware of what his collaborators were doing.
According to the aforementioned source, DEA agents believed they had an extraordinary internal source after arresting Roberto Lopez Najera, a lawyer who allegedly represented “La Barbie”, and who was a protected witness under the identity of “Jennifer”.
To avoid federal prison, the detainee provided a detailed account of cash donations from drug traffickers, which he claimed to have helped deliver. He also covertly recorded conversations with Nicolás Mollinedo Bastar, a close collaborator of López Obrador, who, according to the operation, was involved in the scheme.
According to ProPublica’s investigation, among the people who participated in the negotiation were Nicolás Molinero and other collaborators of AMLO who took part in the negotiations; Mauricio Soto Caballero, businessman and political operator accused of receiving and distributing drug money for the campaign; Sergio Villarreal Barragán, “El Grande”, former state police officer and one of “La Barbie’s” lieutenants.
Another key character mentioned is Francisco León García, also known as Pancho León, son of a mining entrepreneur who at that time was launching his own candidacy for the Mexican Senate as a representative of the left-wing alliance. León is mentioned in the investigation as one of the figures who organized a meeting in January 2006 with drug traffickers at a hotel in the tourist center of Nuevo Vallarta, on the Pacific coast.
The negotiated agreement included the possibility for traffickers to influence the selection of police commanders in key locations, and ensured that the president would not appoint an attorney general who was opposed to them.
Roberto López Nájera, known by his pseudonym “Jennifer”, has been considered a central figure in various undercover and controversial operations in recent years.
Originally a lawyer in Guerrero, his career took a dramatic turn in 2004 when he began collaborating with Edgar Valdez Villarreal, alias “La Barbie”, acting as a liaison to bribe officials and military personnel in favor of the Beltrán Leyva Cartel. However, his role changed drastically in 2007 when he became a informant for the DEA and a protected witness in the United States, revealing internal connections between organized crime and Mexican authorities.
López Nájera not only collaborated with the United States Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), but also worked as a cooperating witness for the former Office of the Attorney General of the Republic (PGR).
During his collaboration, he played a crucial role in the Clean Operation in the government of Felipe Calderón and contributed to the building of cases against several high-ranking military and government officials. His testimony resulted in the arrest of prominent figures such as the former commissioner of the Federal Police, Javier Herrera Valles, the sub-prosecutor Noé Ramírez Mandujano, and General Tomás Ángeles Dauahare, who were later exonerated after the inaccuracy of the accusations was proven.
Despite the implications of their testimonies in the Mexican judicial system, López Nájera has enjoyed a significant level of protection and immunity thanks to their role as an informant for both agencies, the Attorney General’s Office and the DEA.
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Mica
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