On Tuesday, August 13, 2025, Mexico handed over two dozen suspected cartel members to the United States amid rising pressure from the US president to dismantle the country’s powerful drug organizations.
Mexico’s attorney general’s office and security ministry said in a joint statement that authorities sent 26 wanted fugitives to the U.S. for ties to drug-trafficking groups.
According to Mexican authorities, the United States Department of Justice had requested the extradition of the cartel members and would not seek a death penalty.
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) said in a statement, “These fugitives are collectively alleged to have imported into the United States tonnage quantities of dangerous drugs, including cocaine, methamphetamine, fentanyl and heroin.”
This transfer marks the second time this year. 29 suspected cartel members were sent to the United States in February.
The U.S. Embassy said in a statement that among the suspected cartel were key figures in the Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, two of the most dominant organized crime groups in Mexico.
U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Ronald Johnson stated, “This transfer is yet another example of what is possible when two governments unite against violence and impunity.” “These fugitives will now face justice in American courts, and the citizens of both our nations will be safer.”
President Donald Trump has tied tariffs on Mexico to the deadly fentanyl trade. He claims that Mexico has not tackled drug gangs that have been designated global terrorist organizations.
