Mexico charges prosecutor with treason over US involvement in drug raid

The alleged participation of US agents in an April drug operation has raised questions about whether Mexican law was upheld.

Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum speaks during her daily conference in Mexico City, Mexico, May 29, 2026 [Quetzalli Nicte-Ha/Reuters]

Mexico has taken the rare step of charging a former state prosecutor with treason, alleging that he allowed United States agents to take part in a drug raid on the country’s territory.

The case underscores sensitivities about US involvement in Mexico and concerns about the Latin American country’s sovereignty.

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On Wednesday, former Chihuahua Attorney General Cesar Jauregui was accused of permitting US agents to take part in an antidrug operation in the northwestern border state.

Under Mexican law, the federal government must approve the activities of foreign forces on the country’s soil.

But questions emerged about whether the law was being adhered to after two US agents and two Mexican law enforcement officials were killed in a car accident on April 19.

News outlets, citing anonymous sources, reported that the US agents had been collaborating with state law enforcement in the destruction of a drug lab.

Matias Gomez Leautaud, an analyst at the Eurasia Group, a US-based risk consultancy firm, told the news service Reuters that the treason charge “seeks to set a precedent and prevent cooperation between [Mexican] states and the US government without the federal government’s coordination and approval”.

While the administration of President Claudia Sheinbaum has collaborated with the US on issues of crime and insecurity, it has opposed any effort by the US to work directly with Mexican states without federal authorisation first.

In the days after the April car crash, Sheinbaum indicated that her government was not aware that US agents had been involved in a drug operation in Chihuahua.

“Evidently, the military didn’t know there were people participating who weren’t Mexican citizens,” Sheinbaum told reporters at the time.

She called for an investigation into whether state officials had respected Mexico’s constitution and its National Security Law, which govern the involvement of foreign forces on Mexican territory.

The constitution, for example, requires Senate approval for the presence of any foreign troops in Mexico. The country has a long history of US intervention , including multiple military invasions continuing into the early 20th century.

But concerns about the US respecting Mexican sovereignty have risen since US President Donald Trump returned to office for a second term.

Trump has suggested that the US could take unilateral military action in Mexico to address cartel drug-trafficking and violence, and he has characterised Mexico’s government as ineffective in addressing the problem.

“We have to eradicate them,” Trump said of the cartels in March. “We have to knock the hell out of them because they’re getting worse. They’re taking over their country. The cartels are running Mexico.”

In the aftermath of the April crash, conflicting reports emerged about why the two US agents were in the country.

Media identified them as members of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), a US foreign intelligence branch with a history of covert operations.

But state officials denied claims that they were involved in a drug bust. In a news release on April 20, Jauregui “ruled out the involvement of foreign personnel” in his state’s drug operations.

Instead, he said that US instructors had been present nearby for a training session about drones. They subsequently requested to join a convoy of Mexican law enforcement personnel to return to the airport, according to Jauregui.

“It is worth explaining what happened, in order to clarify the facts that are causing some confusion,” Jauregui said at the time.

He resigned from his post as state attorney general later that month.

Mexico’s federal Attorney General Ernestina Godoy has since accused Jauregui of permitting foreign agents to participate in operations on Mexican territory without first sharing information with federal officials.

A judge has ordered Jauregui to be held in pretrial detention as the court decides whether there is sufficient evidence to move forward with a criminal case.

Experts say the treason charge he faces is vaguely defined in Mexican law. It broadly covers acts that undermine Mexico’s sovereignty for the benefit of a foreign entity.

Convictions are rare, with the last widely recognised example coming in 1867, when Emperor Maximilian was tried by court-martial and subsequently executed for crimes against Mexico.

Jauregui is a member of the National Action Party, a conservative political movement in Mexico. Sheinbaum, meanwhile, is a leader in the left-wing Morena party.

据称美国特工参与了4月份的一次缉毒行动，这引发了人们对墨西哥法律是否得到遵守的质疑。

2026年5月29日，墨西哥总统克劳迪娅·欣鲍姆在墨西哥城举行的每日例行记者会上发表讲话。[Quetzalli Nicte-Ha/路透社]

墨西哥采取了罕见的举措，以叛国罪起诉了一名前州检察官，指控他允许美国特工参与在该国境内进行的缉毒行动。

该案件凸显了美国介入墨西哥事务的敏感性以及对这个拉丁美洲国家主权的担忧。

墨西哥寻求证据，以查明导致美军部署的边境枪击事件（共3条，第1条）

墨西哥前总统洛佩斯·奥夫拉多尔之子声称美国吊销了他的签证（共3条记录，此为第2条）

墨西哥总统谢因鲍姆谴责州长在美国面临毒品指控之际返回墨西哥（共3条记录，此为第3条）

周三，前奇瓦瓦州总检察长塞萨尔·豪雷吉被指控允许美国特工参与该西北部边境州的缉毒行动。

根据墨西哥法律，外国军队在该国领土上的活动必须获得联邦政府的批准。

但4月19日，两名美国特工和两名墨西哥执法人员在车祸中丧生，这引发了人们对法律是否得到遵守的质疑。

新闻媒体援引匿名消息人士的话报道称，美国特工曾与州执法部门合作摧毁一个毒品实验室。

美国风险咨询公司欧亚集团的分析师马蒂亚斯·戈麦斯·莱奥托德告诉路透社，叛国罪指控“旨在开创先例，阻止墨西哥各州与美国政府在没有联邦政府协调和批准的情况下进行合作”。

尽管克劳迪娅·欣鲍姆总统领导的政府在打击犯罪和维护治安问题上与美国开展了合作，但它反对美国在未经联邦政府授权的情况下直接与墨西哥各州合作的任何企图。

在四月份的车祸发生后的几天里，谢因鲍姆表示，她的政府并不知道美国特工参与了奇瓦瓦州的一次毒品行动。

“显然，军方并不知道参与者中有人并非墨西哥公民，”谢因鲍姆当时告诉记者。

她呼吁对州政府官员是否尊重墨西哥宪法及其国家安全法进行调查，这两项法律法规对外国军队在墨西哥领土上的活动作出了规定。

例如，墨西哥宪法规定，任何外国军队驻扎在墨西哥都必须获得参议院批准。墨西哥长期以来一直受到美国的干预，包括多次军事入侵，这些入侵一直持续到20世纪初。

但自从美国总统唐纳德·特朗普连任以来，人们对美国是否尊重墨西哥主权的担忧日益加剧。

特朗普曾暗示美国可以对墨西哥采取单方面军事行动，以打击贩毒集团的毒品走私和暴力活动，他还指责墨西哥政府在解决这一问题上无能为力。

“我们必须铲除他们，”特朗普三月份谈到贩毒集团时说。“我们必须狠狠打击他们，因为他们越来越猖獗。他们正在控制自己的国家。贩毒集团正在掌控墨西哥。”

四月份的坠机事件发生后，关于这两名美国特工为何身在该国，出现了相互矛盾的报道。

媒体确认他们是中央情报局（CIA）成员，中央情报局是美国的一个对外情报机构，有着秘密行动的历史。

但州政府官员否认了他们参与缉毒行动的说法。4月20日，豪雷吉在一份新闻稿中“排除了外国人员参与”该州缉毒行动的可能性。

据豪雷吉称，他表示，当时有美国教官在附近进行无人机培训。随后，他们请求加入墨西哥执法人员的车队返回机场。

“有必要解释一下发生了什么事，以澄清一些造成误解的事实，”豪雷吉当时说道。

当月晚些时候，他辞去了州检察长的职务。

墨西哥联邦总检察长埃内斯蒂娜·戈多伊随后指责豪雷吉允许外国特工参与在墨西哥领土上的行动，而没有事先与联邦官员分享信息。

法官已下令将豪雷吉羁押候审，法院将决定是否有足够的证据提起刑事诉讼。

专家表示，他面临的叛国罪指控在墨西哥法律中定义模糊。该罪名宽泛地涵盖了为外国实体谋利而损害墨西哥主权的行为。

定罪的情况很少见，最近一次广为人知的例子发生在 1867 年，当时马克西米利安皇帝因对墨西哥犯下的罪行被军事法庭审判并随后被处决。

豪雷吉是墨西哥保守派政治运动——国家行动党的成员。与此同时，谢因鲍姆是左翼政党莫雷纳党的领导人。