Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum stated on Saturday that no personal interest should supersede the national interest, following the return of Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha to office amid U.S. federal indictments alleging cartel collaboration.
Sheinbaum, who took office in October 2024, emphasized in a post on X that public service must prioritize the welfare of the Mexican people over individual ambition. 'No personal interest can ever be placed above the interests of the people and the nation,' she wrote. 'Especially when what is being placed above Mexico is not the well-being of its people, but blatant ambition for power itself.'
Rocha, 77, resumed his duties on Friday, one day after U.S. prosecutors in Washington unsealed charges accusing him and nine other current and former Mexican officials of conspiring with the Los Chapitos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. The indictments allege the group trafficked medications into the United States in exchange for political support and bribes. Rocha denied any wrongdoing, asserting he returned 'with a clean and held-high forehead' and framed the legal action as a politically motivated attack against the ruling Morena party and President Sheinbaum's movement.
The charges were filed in April, according to court documents. Reuters reported last year that Washington revoked the visas of at least 50 Mexican politicians and officials, including members of Sheinbaum's coalition, in response to cartel-related allegations. The U.S. offensive against drug cartels, spearheaded by former President Donald Trump, has intensified cross-border scrutiny of Mexican officials.
Rocha, who has led Sinaloa since June 2025, was photographed alongside Sheinbaum at the National Palace in Mexico City on June 26, 2025, underscoring his prominent role within the governing coalition. The Ministry of the Interior has not publicly commented on the indictments, which remain under review in U.S. federal court.
