37 Mexican Nationals Wanted for Serious Crimes Transferred to the United States from Mexico, Including Leaders of Foreign Terrorist Organizations

Washington DC : The United States announced today that yesterday evening it took into custody 37 fugitives from Mexico facing a range of federal criminal charges around the country, including charges relating to narcoterrorism, providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization, firearms trafficking, human smuggling, money laundering, and various drug trafficking offenses, including conspiracy to traffic methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine.

Among the fugitives taken into U.S. custody are prolific human smugglers, violent arms traffickers, and alleged members of dangerous drug cartels, including those designated as Foreign Terrorist Organizations and Specially Designated Global Terrorists, such as the Sinaloa Cartel, Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), Cártel del Noreste (CDN, formerly Los Zetas), and Cártel de Golfo (CDG) as well as additional drug trafficking organizations, such as the Gulf Cartel, La Linea, and the former Beltrán-Leyva Organization. 

“This is another landmark achievement in the Trump Administration’s mission to destroy the cartels. These 37 cartel members – including terrorists from the Sinaloa Cartel, CJNG, and others – will now pay for their crimes against the American people on American soil,” said Attorney General Pamela Bondi. “We are grateful for this collaboration with our international partners and will deliver swift, comprehensive justice for members of Foreign Terrorist Organizations who have spent years preying on the American people.”

“The FBI has proven that we will hold dangerous criminals accountable for their egregious violent acts, no matter where they try to hide,” said FBI Director Kash Patel. “Today’s announcement of the return of dozens of fugitives from Mexico to face charges is yet another example of the FBI’s relentless work and partnerships here in the U.S. and in Mexico. We will continue to work to put a stop to these drug cartels, arms traffickers, and terrorists from bringing crime, drugs, and firearms to our city streets and neighborhoods.”

“The significance of this transfer cannot be overstated. Thirty-seven fugitives were brought from Mexico to the United States to face justice for alleged crimes that have spread violence, threatened public safety, and devastated families. Among them are individuals tied to the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, both designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations,” said Administrator Terrance Cole of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). “We thank the Government of Mexico for standing with us. DEA will keep driving forward with our U.S. and international partners to dismantle these terrorist cartels, cut off the fentanyl supply, and save American lives.”

“Leadership like President Trump’s and Attorney General Bondi’s to work diligently to bring all of these wanted criminals back to the United States reinforces their commitment to getting justice for their victims,” said Director Gadyaces S. Serralta of the United States Marshals Service (USMS). “This sends a very clear message; justice does not stop at borders.”

“ATF is on the front lines of the fight against violent crime,” said Deputy Director Rob Cekada of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). “Our agents are hunting down gangs, cartels, and transnational organizations that traffic illegal firearms and turn our streets into war zones. We will dismantle these networks at every level, cut off their access to weapons, and hold every criminal accountable. Those who profit from violence will be found, stopped, and brought to justice.”

Yesterday’s transfer marks only the third time that Mexico has used its National Security Law to expel fugitives to the United States. It is also the largest such transfer of fugitives to occur — the first transfer, on Feb. 27, 2025, involved 29 fugitives, and the second, on Aug.12, 2025, involved 26 fugitives. 

Mexican National Fugitives Transferred to U.S. Custody

Mexican National Fugitives Transferred to U.S. Custody

                                  Mexican National Fugitives Transferred to U.S. CustodyIncluded in yesterday’s transfer are the following fugitives:
 

• Maria Del Rosario Navarro-Sanchez. Navarro-Sanchez is the first Mexican national to be charged with providing material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization based on her involvement with the CJNG, including providing the cartel with grenades and engaging in alien smuggling, firearms trafficking, bulk cash smuggling, and narcotics trafficking on its behalf. CJNG, which controls a significant portion of the narcotics trafficking trade, also engages in money laundering, bribery, extortion of migrants, and other criminal activities, including acts of violence and intimidation. 

• Eduardo Rigoberto Velasco Calderon and Eliomar Segura Torres. Velasco Calderon and Segura Torres are alleged to be members of Mexico-based money laundering organizations responsible for collecting bulk cash drug proceeds in the United States and transferring the funds to Mexico through cryptocurrency transfers. These organizations help launder funds for Mexico-based drug trafficking organizations, including the Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generacion and the Sinaloa Cartel. Velasco Calderon and Segura Torres received financial compensation for the money laundered in the form of a commission, or percentage of the money laundered, each time that proceeds of drug sales were returned to the drug trafficking organization.

   

• Heriberto Hernández Rodriguez. Hernández Rodriguez is accused of having been a member of Cártel del Noreste responsible for drug trafficking, kidnappings and assassinations, and procuring weapons for the cartel. Between 2006 and his arrest in November 2022, Hernández Rodriguez is alleged to have commanded hundreds of sicarios and ordered the deaths of multiple people. Hernández Rodriguez is also alleged to have overseen security for the cartel’s stash houses in Mexico, which served as staging points for thousands of kilograms of marijuana, cocaine, and methamphetamine to be transported into the United States for distribution.

   

• Pedro Inzunza Noriega. In May 2025, Pedro Inzunza Noriega, also known as Sagitario and his son, Pedro Inzunza Coronel, were the first Sinaloa Cartel leaders in the nation to be charged with narcoterrorism and material support of terrorism, along with drug trafficking and money laundering charges. The Beltran Leyva Organization (BLO) is a powerful and violent faction of the Sinaloa Cartel that is believed to be the world’s largest known fentanyl production network. Five other BLO leaders are charged with drug trafficking and money laundering. Pedro Inzunza Noriega worked closely with his son, Pedro Inzunza Coronel, to produce and aggressively traffic fentanyl to the United States. The father and son led one of the largest and most sophisticated fentanyl production networks in the world. Over the past several years, they have trafficked tens of thousands of kilograms of fentanyl into the United States. On Dec. 3, 2024, Mexican law enforcement raided multiple locations in Sinaloa that are controlled and managed by the father and son and seized 1,500 kilograms (more than 1.65 tons) of fentanyl – the largest known seizure of fentanyl in world history. On Nov. 30, 2025, the son, Inzunza Coronel, was killed during a capture operation in Mexico. On Dec. 31, 2025, Pedro Inzunza Noriega, aka Sagitario was captured by the Mexican military.

   

• Juan Pablo Bastidas Erenas also known as Payo. Juan Pablo Bastidas Erenas aka Payo is a high-ranking lieutenant of the Beltran Leyva faction of the Sinaloa Cartel and the long-time right-hand man of Consolidated Priority Organization Target Oscar Manuel Gastelum Iribe, also known as “El Musico”. Bastidas has operated with impunity for over 20 years and has imported and distributed thousands of tons of cocaine from Colombia to the United States, via Mexico. In addition to cocaine trafficking, Bastidas has imported and distributed large quantities of fentanyl and methamphetamine from Mexico to the United States. Bastidas is also responsible for laundering millions of dollars from drug proceeds, weapons trafficking, and has engaged in kidnapping, torture, and murder. Bastidas was captured on May 28, 2025, by the Mexican military.

   

• Juan Carlos Alonso Reyes. Regional Priority Organization Target Juan Carlos Alonso Reyes was the leader of “The Office,” a transnational criminal organization which operated physical locations in Tijuana where Alonso Reyes and his co-conspirators sold mainly fentanyl and methamphetamine. The Office’s physical locations worked as a type of illicit 24/7 drug convenience store for mostly American buyers. It operated so openly and notoriously that at one time you could search The Office on Google Maps, and the physical location would appear in Tijuana. Alonso Reyes coordinated drug sales and distribution from The Office to hundreds of internal body carriers who then smuggled the drugs into the United States via the district’s Ports of Entry. On Jan. 23, 2024, the Mexican Attorney General’s Office (FGR) physically seized and closed the Office’s latest location in Tijuana.

   

• Julio Cesar Mancera Dozal. Julio Cesar Mancera Dozal was the leader of a drug smuggling organization that is part of the Sinaloa Cartel that imported and distributed hundreds of pounds of cocaine into the United States from Mexico. His organization was headquartered in Tijuana, Mexico, and imported drugs into San Diego, California, through vehicles with sophisticated non-factory compartments, with further distribution into the Central District of California (Los Angeles, Orange County, and Riverside). Once crossed, additional co-conspirators also under the leadership and coordination of Mancera removed, stored, and transported the drugs further into the United States.

   

• Juan Pedro Saldivar-Farias, also known as “Z-27,” is charged in the Southern District of Texas with engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, as well as associated drug trafficking offenses. He faces a maximum penalty of life in prison. According to the indictment, Saldivar-Farias served as a Zeta Regional Commander and Plaza Boss located in the Falcon Lake area of South Texas. Along with his brother, Jose Manuel Saldivar-Farias, also known as “Z-31” or “El Borrado,” Saldivar-Farias oversaw all narcotics moving in and around the Falcon Lake area. Agents estimate that several multi-ton quantities of marijuana were crossed into the United States through this area every week. During their time as Plaza bosses, multi-ton quantities of cocaine were also imported into the United States on a monthly basis. The Saldivar-Farias brothers were the source of marijuana and cocaine for the NETO Drug Trafficking Organization. Any other dope or contraband moving through the area from non-Zetas had to be approved by one of the brothers, or was subject to a “piso,” or tax, paid for landing in or crossing through the area. A separate piso was charged for crossing the contraband into the United States. Individuals who did not secure permission or pay the piso would be held hostage, beaten, tortured, killed, or some combination of all four. Saldivar-Farias’s brother, Z-31, was caught by immigration authorities in 2015, pleaded guilty to drug trafficking charges in 2017, and is currently serving a thirty-year sentence.

   

• Ricardo Cortez-Mateos, also known as “Billeton,” is a former high-ranking member of the Cartel del Golfo, and is charged in the Southern District of Texas with significant drug trafficking offenses for his role in importing large quantities of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine. Cortez-Mateos, 41, of Mexico, was originally indicted by a grand jury in Brownsville on Nov. 10, 2021, with nine counts, including conspiracy to possesses with intent to distribute and conspiracy to unlawfully import more than 50 grams of meth, more than five kilograms of cocaine, and more than 400 grams of fentanyl. Cortez-Mateos faces a maximum penalty of up to life in prison if convicted.

   

Below is a complete list of fugitives,[1] as well as the districts in which they are charged:
 

Attorney General Pamela Bondi thanked the law enforcement officers of the DEA, FBI, ATF, USMS, and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) for their valuable contributions to these investigations.

Attorney General Bondi also thanked the Justice Department Criminal Division’s Office of International Affairs for coordinating the transfers, as well as the Human Rights and Special Prosecutions Section, and the Money Laundering, Narcotics, and Forfeiture Section, and the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the District of Arizona, the Southern District of California, the District of Columbia, the District of Colorado, the Southern District of Florida, the Eastern District of Kentucky, the Middle District of Georgia, the Southern District of Indiana, the District of New Mexico, the Eastern District of New York, the Southern District of New York, the Western District of Oklahoma, the Western District of Pennsylvania, the Southern District of Texas, the Western District of Texas, and the Western District of Washington for handling the prosecution of the cases.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.