The former head of the Mexican security service will stand trial for drug trafficking in the United States.

Long awaited drug trafficking trial against former Mexican public security minister Genaro Garcia Luna will begin this Tuesday in New York, just over three years after he was arrested by US authorities for allegedly collaborating with the powerful Sinaloa cartel.

The process will begin with the selection of a jury, interviewing dozens of possible candidates, to integrate it after the initial selection carried out in recent days.

After the formation of the jury, the initial arguments of the prosecutor’s office and the defense Garcia Moonwho, if found guilty, faces a minimum sentence of ten years in prison and a maximum life sentence.

The man who was the head of public security under the government Felipe Calderon (2006-2012) is accused of drug trafficking and accepting bribes from the Sinaloa cartel in exchange for facilitating the group’s operations.

Former organization leader Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán was tried in 2019 and sentenced to life imprisonment in the same Brooklyn County Court in New York that hears the Garcia Luna case.

COOPERATION WITH THE SINALOA CARTEL

While there have been rumors for years about the former Mexican minister’s alleged collaboration with a drug ring, in a lawsuit against “El Chapo” Garcia Moon was directly implicated by one of the key witnesses Jesus “King” Zambada.

“El Rey”, a former Cartel official imprisoned in United States of Americaclaimed to have bribed a millionaire Garcia Moonboth when he was Secretary of Public Safety and earlier when he was in charge of the now defunct Federal Investigation Agency.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office assures that “the accused used his official position to help Sinaloa cartelin exchange for “multi-million dollar bribes” and put forward that has a lot of evidence.

LOTS OF EVIDENCE AND WITNESSES

The sheer volume of documents and other evidence gathered by the US authorities partly lengthened the pre-trial process in order to give lawyers time to familiarize themselves with these materials and prepare their defense.

Among the arguments you are expected to use Garcia Moon The figures, according to court documents, are the fact that during his tenure he was recognized by the United States for fighting drug trafficking and had numerous meetings with US officials.

In the meantime, it remains to be seen whether the former minister will involve other senior officials during the trial, or whether some of the witnesses who testify throughout the trial can do so.

prosecution He said he plans to call “numerous witnesses” to testify, though their identities have not been released.

Last November, the judge hearing the case, Brian Cogan, authorized prosecution give the defense the names of witnesses at the last moment, only three days in advance for those deemed unclassified and one day in advance for classified ones.

According to prosecution, identifying relevant witnesses may compromise your safety. Anonymity and protection will also be guaranteed to jurors, according to Kogan’s decree issued last year, which emphasized “the danger of the defendant, demonstrated by the seriousness of the crimes of which he is accused.”

Unlike many other responders in this type of process, Garcia Moon He will go to court in civilian clothes, in a suit and tie, and not in the usual prison uniform, as the judge recently allowed in response to a request from the defense.

EFE