In stunning move, U.S. to drop drugs case against ex-Mexican defense minister
NOVEMBER 17, 2020 4:31 PM
UPDATED AN HOUR AGO
By Drazen Jorgic, Mark Hosenball
3 MIN READ
MEXICO CITY/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. prosecutors will drop drug charges against ex-Mexican Defense Minister Salvador Cienfuegos and turn over the investigation to Mexico, saying “sensitive” foreign policy considerations outweighed the interest in pressing the case.
The surprise decision to dismiss the charges in the politically explosive case was announced in a joint statement on Tuesday from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and Mexico’s attorney general’s office.
“The United States has determined that sensitive and important foreign policy considerations outweigh the government’s interest in pursuing the prosecution of the defendant,” prosecutors from the U.S. Eastern District of New York said in a court document unsealed on Tuesday.
. . .
The arrest of Cienfuegos, who for years worked closely with U.S. counterparts on highly sensitive cross-border criminal matters, put a severe strain on security ties between the two countries.
More:
https://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-mexico-corruption-usa/in-shock-move-u-s-abandons-drugs-case-against-ex-mexican-defense-minister-idUKKBN27X318
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