WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 22nd February, 2023) Genaro Garcia Luna, Mexico's former Public Security Chief, was found guilty of taking millions of Dollars from drug cartels while he was in charge of battling Mexico's organized crime, the US Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of New York said in a statement on Tuesday.
"The Verdict is in: Genaro Garcia Luna is guilty on all counts," said the statement posted to the office's Twitter account.
According to court documents, Garcia Luna used his position as Mexico's top law enforcement official to assist the Sinaloa drug cartel in exchange for millions of dollars in bribes. Some of his conduct included facilitating safe passage for Cartel drug shipments, furnishing sensitive law enforcement information about ongoing police investigations into the Cartel, and helping the Cartel attack rival drug cartels in order to ease the importation of tons of cocaine and other drugs into the US.
In one instance, Garcia Luna's Federal Police Force, of which he was in charge, acted as bodyguards for the Cartel and allowed members to don police uniforms and badges before escorting them to the Mexico City airport, where officers assisted Cartel members in the unloading of cocaine shipments before delivering the cocaine to the Cartel, said the court documents.
Garcia Luna was found guilty of engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, international cocaine distribution conspiracy, conspiracy to distribute and possess with intent to distribute cocaine, conspiracy to import cocaine, and making false statements.
The verdict comes after three days of deliberation in a Brooklyn Federal District Court. According to a court release, Garcia Luna, who has been described as the J. Edgar Hoover of Mexico, faces a minimum of 20 years in prison and a maximum sentence of life in prison.�
