EXCLUSIVE: Mexican Government Orders Military Silence After Fmr. Defense Secretary’s U.S. Arrest

The Mexican government ordered its top military officials to remain silent regarding the recent arrest of a former secretary of defense by the U.S. on drug trafficking charges.

Former Secretary of Defense Salvador Cienfuegos is currently in U.S. custody after pleading not guilty to drug trafficking charges on Thursday. U.S. authorities arrested Mexico’s former top military official last month when he landed in California for a vacation. Cienfuegos led Mexico’s military and counter-cartels efforts during the administration of former President Enrique Pena Nieto. U.S. prosecutors claim that while supposedly fighting cartels, Cienfuegos was actually a drug lord himself, nicknamed “El Padrino or Godfather” who protected a faction of the Beltran Leyva Cartel called “H2.” The arrest sent shockwaves through Mexico’s government, leading to speculation about which public official will be named next.

Breitbart Texas obtained a copy of a letter that Mexico’s Defense Ministry issued to all of its top military officials, ordering them to not make any statements “particularly to the press” about Cienfuegos’ arrest.

The letter was distributed on October 27, days after Cienfuegos’s highly publicized arrest. Officials are notified to keep silent about the case.

While Cienfuegos is not part of the current administration led by Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO), he along with his top government officials recently voiced outrage at having been left out of the loop which has caused diplomatic tensions. The arrest also raised a cloud of corruption over Mexico’s military. That perception comes as AMLO uses the military as the backbone of many of his projects, including the development of key infrastructure.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.     

Tony Aranda from Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project contributed to this report