Amid mounting pressure to dismantle drug traffickers, Mexico transferred 26 top cartel leaders to the United States this week to face a range of federal and state criminal charges from across the country.
It’s another win for the Trump administration as it works to secure the border and stop the flow of drugs from Mexican cartels into the country.
Mexican officials agreed to hand over the 26 fugitives amid pressure from President Donald Trump to take down the country’s powerful drug organizations, Reuters reported.
They were taken into custody Tuesday for crimes in the U.S. tied to drug-trafficking groups and other organized crime.
The cartel members face a range of charges related to drug trafficking, hostage taking, kidnapping, illegal use of firearms, human smuggling, money laundering, the murder of a sheriff’s deputy, and other crimes, according to the U.S Department of Justice.
“Today is the latest example of the Trump administration’s historic efforts to dismantle cartels and foreign terrorist organizations,” Attorney General Pamela Bondi said in a statement.
Mexico officials said the DOJ had requested their extradition. The department said it would not seek the death penalty for the accused cartel members, Mexico’s attorney general’s office and security ministry said in a joint statement per Reuters.
The DOJ said the group includes leaders and managers of dangerous drug cartels and foreign terrorist organizations, including the Sinaloa Cartel, Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG), and Cártel del Noreste (formerly Los Zetas).
The Jalisco New Generation Cartel and the Sinaloa Cartel are Mexico’s two dominant organized crime groups.
The fugitives have allegedly smuggled massive quantities of dangerous drugs, including cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl and heroin, along with illegal immigrants and weapons.
“These 26 men have all played a role in bringing violence and drugs to American shores — under this Department of Justice, they will face severe consequences for their crimes against this country,” Bondi said. “We are grateful to Mexico’s National Security team for their collaboration in this matter.”
Abigael González Valencia, a leader of the “Los Cuinis,” cartel, which is aligned with the notorious Jalisco New Generation cartel (CJNG) and Roberto Salazar, who is accused of participating in the 2008 killing of a Los Angeles sheriff’s deputy, were among those returned to the U.S.
Co-Founder of Los Cuinis Drug Cartel Sentenced to 30 Years in Prison; High-Ranking Cartel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG) Operative Pleads Guiltyhttps://t.co/p66WokOXg6 pic.twitter.com/UsFCqrVmDf
— Criminal Division (@DOJCrimDiv) June 20, 2025
Other fugitives turned over include:
- Kevin Gil Acosta and Martin Zazueta Perez – According to court documents, Gil Acosta and Zazueta Perez are leaders of the security apparatus for the Chapitos, a powerful faction of the Sinaloa Cartel that engages in prolific fentanyl trafficking.
- Abdul Karim Conteh, a national of Sierra Leone, allegedly led a human smuggling organization that smuggled thousands of migrants to the United States through Mexico. Conteh allegedly oversaw the migrants’ unlawful entry into the United States through the use of ladders and tunnels.
- Leobardo Garcia Corralesis believed to be an important figure in the Sinaloa Cartel who has trafficked kilogram quantities of fentanyl into the United States. He claims to be close friends and associates with Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera, aka “El Chapo.”
- Luis Raul Castro Valenzuelaalso known as “Chacho,” a member of the Sinaloa Cartel, has been charged with kidnapping and holding hostage a U.S. citizen.
- Juan Carlos Felix Gastelum also known as “El Chavo Félix,” a major Sinaloa Cartel cell leader, is alleged to be a principal operator of the Sinaloa Cartel’s clandestine methamphetamine labs in the Sierra Madre Mountains.
- Pablo Edwin Huerta Nuno, also known as “Flaquito,” is a violent Tijuana Plaza boss who has operated for the last 15 years. Huerta-Nuno is alleged to have supplied thousands of kilograms of methamphetamine, fentanyl, and cocaine to distributors and cells located throughout San Diego and Los Angeles.
“This transfer is yet another example of what is possible when two governments unite against violence and impunity,” U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson said in a statement, per Reuters. “These fugitives will now face justice in American courts, and the citizens of both our nations will be safer.”
Kevin Gil Acosta y Martín Zazueta Pérez – Jefes de seguridad de “Los Chapitos” (Cártel de Sinaloa).
Dirigieron ataques armados con AK-47, M-16 y lanzagranadas contra autoridades y protegían laboratorios de fentanilo pic.twitter.com/wTPiMKKzCZ
— el blog de los guachos (@blogdelosguachs) August 13, 2025
Fox News Digital reported the transfer is the second of its kind this year. In February, Mexican authorities sent 29 alleged cartel leaders to the U.S., including Rafael Caro Quintero, who prosecutors say was behind the torture and murder of a DEA agent in 1985.
Trump and Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum are in talks to reach a security agreement to expand cooperation in the fight against cartels.
Sheinbaum has been more aggressive than the last president about going after cartels but opposes any threat of the U.S. military entering Mexico to combat the cartels, Fox News Digital reported.
“We co-operate, we collaborate, but there is not going to be an invasion,” Sheinbaum said. “It’s off the table, absolutely off the table.”
According to sources, Trump has reportedly secretly authorized U.S. military force against cartels in Latin America that have been designated by the U.S. as terrorist organizations, which would allow U.S. forces to engage with them.
The deal also comes ahead of 25% tariffs on Mexican goods coming into the U.S. imposed by Trump. The two leaders reportedly spoke and Trump told her he would delay 30% tariffs on the country for 90 days for negotiations.
The complete list of fugitives is available here. They are expected to appear in federal court in the coming days.
