Mexico’s Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero announced that a Mexican federal judge is the target of a corruption investigation after he ordered the release of one of the top leaders of the Gulf Cartel.
During a recent news conference, the country’s top prosecutor explained the case and how his agency had decided to open an investigation against Judge Gregorio Salazar. The judge recently granted a release on bond for Gulf Cartel boss Jose Alfredo “El Contador” Cardenas. Gertz Manero revealed that Salazar is under investigation for “crimes against the administration of justice.”
During the news conference and in a series of prepared statements and subsequent information packets provided to news outlets, Gertz Manero explained the allegations that his prosecutors had made against Cardenas and the supporting evidence that Salazar allegedly ignored. He also claimed that prosecutors had not supported their claims.
As Breitbart Texas reported, on November 20, Salazar ordered the release of Cardenas after claiming that prosecutors had not proven the cause for the requested extradition and that he was not a flight risk, so he did not need to be held in custody.
Cardenas is the reputed leader of the Escorpiones faction of the Gulf Cartel, which is credited with hundreds of forced disappearances, murders, and kidnappings. Under the leadership of El Contador, the Gulf Cartel underwent a series of turf wars that spread much violence throughout the border state of Tamaulipas.
Authorities arrested El Contador in 2022 in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, and flew him to Mexico City where he had been until his release, Breitbart Texas previously reported.
The man known as El Contador was arrested twice in 2019 and 2018; each time, he was able to get his release under suspicious circumstances.
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.
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