Fugitive associated with Sinaloa Cartel arrested in Chicago
Original reporting: El Financiero
What happened
U.S. authorities arrested Rogelio Castro in Chicago under a Texas federal warrant tied to alleged large-scale cocaine distribution, according to El Financiero and the U.S. Marshals Service.
Reporting and context
U.S. authorities arrested Rogelio Castro in Chicago, Illinois, after the U.S. Marshals Service identified him as a fugitive associated with the Sinaloa Cartel. According to El Financiero, the agency announced the arrest on September 22 and said Castro was wanted in the Western District of Texas under a federal bench warrant tied to the large-scale distribution of cocaine. The arrest was carried out by personnel assigned to the Chicago Homeland Security Task Force Division and the Great Lakes Regional Fugitive Task Force.
El Financiero reported that the U.S. authorities did not release details of the drug-trafficking case or say when the search for Castro began. The report said the DEA describes the Sinaloa Cartel as an international organization rooted in the Mexican state of Sinaloa and linked to drug trafficking into the United States. Those descriptions and the warrant information are claims attributed to U.S. agencies; the available source does not provide a court finding on the allegations against Castro.
The arrest came as Mexican authorities reported the detention in Mazatlán of Jesús Antonio “N,” known as “El Peli,” who was described by Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch as an alleged operator for Genaro Aarón “N,” a reported member of the Chapitos faction. Mexico has deployed about 3,400 additional security personnel and soldiers to Sinaloa, including 1,600 military personnel assigned to Mazatlán. Official figures cited in the report say federal operations in Sinaloa during 2026 have resulted in 1,026 arrests, the seizure of 2,031 firearms and 47.9 tons of drugs, and the disabling of 672 laboratories or production areas.