Lawyer Calls for the Repatriation of 13 Expelled Drug Traffickers, Including Members of the Z-40 and Z-42 Cartels

Thirteen of the 92 alleged drug traffickers expelled by Mexico to the United States between 2025 and 2026 formally requested consular assistance from the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs (SRE) in order to be repatriated and tried on national soil. Among the petitioners are six alleged operatives of Los Zetas, a criminal organization whose case in U.S. courts is proceeding simultaneously with the prosecution of its former top leaders, Miguel Ángel and Omar Treviño Morales—aliases “El Z-40” and “El Z-42.”

On June 3, 2026, Marco Antonio Avilés Huerta, counsel for the alleged drug traffickers, submitted the written request to the Foreign Ministry. He questioned why the Mexican government had applied due process to the governor on leave of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya—but not to his own clients—who face accusations of similar crimes. “Today, we are denouncing the fact that the Mexican government permitted precisely the kind of interventionism that, at this very moment, they are so loudly boasting we must not allow,” the attorney declared upon leaving the SRE.

The repatriation request covers Jesús Alberto Galaviz Vega, alias “El Z-13”; Juan Pedro Saldívar Farías, alias “El Z-27”; Miguel Ángel Rodríguez Díaz, alias “El Alfa Metro”; and Ramiro Pérez Moreno, alias “El Rama”—all identified as alleged members of Los Zetas. It also includes Ricardo González Sauceda, alias “El Ricky,” and Carlos Alberto Monsivais Treviño, alias “La Bola,” of the Northeast Cartel (CDN)—the successor organization to Los Zetas, whose primary sphere of influence lies in Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas. Avilés Huerta didn’t disclose the identities of the other seven alleged extraditees for whom he also sought consular assistance. This case is part of the judicial proceedings currently underway in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in Washington, D.C., against the Treviño Morales brothers. Extradited on February 27, 2025, they stand accused of engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, drug trafficking conspiracy, firearms offenses, and international money laundering conspiracy. Both men pleaded not guilty on March 14, 2025, before Judge Trevor McFadden. On September 12, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) informed Judge McFadden that it wouldn’t seek the death penalty against either defendant—a decision authorized by Attorney General Pamela Jo Bondi. The same case file in which these proceedings are being heard also included Daniel Pérez Rojas, alias “El Cachetes”—a former military officer and lieutenant to “Z-40″—who pleaded guilty on April 22, 2026, to conspiracy to engage in international drug trafficking; he faces sentencing on October 30, 2026, with a potential penalty ranging from 10 years to life imprisonment.

Attorney Avilés Huerta argued before the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs (SRE) that the expulsion of the 92 detainees constituted an arbitrary and unlawful U.S. intervention, carried out in disregard of the legal procedures stipulated in international treaties and the American Convention on Human Rights. “There must be the political will for the Mexican government to take action to restore these individuals’ rights. And how? By requesting their repatriation,” he asserted. The attorney argued that a comparison with the *Rocha Moya* case—in which due process *was* observed—demonstrates unequal treatment that runs counter to the constitutional principle of equality before the law.

The request for consular assistance doesn’t imply a contradictory stance by the Foreign Ministry regarding the expulsions, Avilés Huerta argued, given that the SRE is not a member of the Security Cabinet—the body responsible for ordering such transfers. Should the Foreign Ministry fail to respond—or provide an unsatisfactory response—the attorney indicated that he would file a writ of *amparo* and, if necessary, escalate the litigation before the Inter-American Commission and Court of Human Rights.

The repatriation request comes at a time when U.S. judicial pressure on Mexico is intensifying. The DOJ has warned that cooperation from drug cartel leaders extradited from Mexico could lead to new indictments against Mexican politicians. Todd Blanche, the Acting U.S. Attorney, stated on May 6, 2026, that this scenario “will continue,” referring to prosecutions such as that of Rocha Moya. President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo has responded by demanding evidence prior to any arrest and maintaining that bilateral cooperation takes place solely under the principle of coordination without subordination.

Source: Zeta Tijuana