Former DEA official calls for Rocha Moya arrest

Reporting and context

Derek Maltz, a former acting head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, called for Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha Moya to be held accountable and urged Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch to arrange his arrest and transfer to the United States, Revista Espejo reported. Maltz made the comments in a social-media post after Rocha Moya announced his return to the governorship. Maltz also repeated his broader claim that cartel networks depend on corrupt officials and compromised institutions.

Revista Espejo said Maltz’s post responded to a Wall Street Journal report about Rocha Moya’s return. The outlet recalled that Maltz had previously called for the arrest and transfer to the United States of 10 current and former Sinaloa officials whom U.S. prosecutors have accused of criminal ties. The source report said the U.S. Justice Department filed an indictment in April against Sinaloa officials and police commanders, alleging they conspired with Sinaloa Cartel leaders to import drugs in exchange for political protection, institutional support and bribes.

Those allegations are claims by U.S. prosecutors, not a final court determination. Rocha Moya returned after an indefinite leave and after the detention of Fausto Corrales Rodríguez, whom the report described as a key living witness in investigations into the alleged kidnapping of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and the killing of Héctor Melesio Cuén Ojeda. Mexico’s Interior Ministry said the governor’s return was a personal decision, while Morena and allied governors publicly distanced themselves from it, according to Revista Espejo.