Drug Traffickers Claim They Funded Mexico's President's Campaign

The Justice Department recently concluded a secret investigation into allegations that drug traffickers funded Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's 2006 presidential campaign. U.S. officials reportedly decided against pursuing the case, citing a lack of support for a corruption investigation involving a significant Mexican political figure. López Obrador has consistently denied receiving funds from drug traffickers during his campaign. In a new book, journalist Anabel Hernández reveals claims from a trafficker who allegedly stated he delivered $500,000 to López Obrador's campaign. This assertion was made shortly after the trafficker's arrest in 2010, and he expressed willingness to cooperate with U.S. authorities, contingent upon his extradition. However, former officials noted that U.S. law enforcement often omitted high-level corruption allegations from reports intended for broader distribution. During the 2018 trial of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, evidence emerged suggesting that the Sinaloa cartel had made substantial payments to officials during López Obrador's tenure as mayor of Mexico City. Testimony indicated that the cartel had funneled millions to a top security official and potentially to López Obrador's campaign against Vicente Fox. Additionally, former Gulf Cartel leader Osiel Cárdenas Guillén claimed his organization contributed to López Obrador's campaign and government officials. Despite López Obrador's assertions of no evidence supporting these claims, internal documents from his administration revealed concerns regarding alleged drug ties of a campaign staff member. A DEA informant also linked a key figure from López Obrador's campaign to drug trafficking activities, raising further questions about the integrity of the campaign's funding sources.