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Former Mexican Governor Tomás Yarrington Pleads Guilty to Money Laundering in the US

2021-03-26T04:46:22.951Z


Yarrington, governor of Tamaulipas between 1999 and 2005, pleaded guilty to receiving more than $ 3.5 million in bribes and subsequently laundering that money in the United States. Following an agreement, the prosecution dismissed the drug trafficking charges against him.


The former Mexican governor of Tamaulipas Tomás Yarrington Ruvalcaba, who was accused of having ties to drug trafficking, pleaded guilty this Thursday in a Texas court to

receiving more than 3.5 million dollars in bribes

and later laundering that money in the United States.

Yarrington, who was governor between 1999 and 2005 and who was also a candidate for the Presidency of Mexico, admitted that he received bribes from various individuals and private companies during his tenure and that he laundered that money by buying property in the United States.

It would also have diverted to bank accounts in the United States more than 60 million

Mexican

pesos 

(about 3 million dollars) from the budget of the municipality of Nuevo Laredo, Tamaulipas.

With the money, his bosses bought ranches, an aircraft, and other assets in the United States.

[This Mexican governor is accused of laundering drug money.

Your ex-lover's testimony could sink you]

In 2013, Yarrington was indicted in the United States on eight counts, including racketeering, drug trafficking and conspiracy to launder money.

He was a fugitive until his arrest in Italy in 2017

, and was subsequently extradited to the United States.

The former governor initially pleaded not guilty, but this Thursday he

changed his statement on the money laundering charge as part of an agreement with the prosecution

, which dropped the other seven charges against him, including those related to trafficking. of drugs.

The United States detains the former governor of Chihuahua, César Duarte

July 8, 202000: 37

The prosecution initially argued that Yarrington had diverted millions of dollars in bribes from the Gulf Cartel in exchange for offering them control over local police and allowing drug smuggling across the border.

Angela Dodge, a spokeswoman for the federal prosecutor's office in Houston,

declined to comment on whether prosecutors still believe Yarrington collaborated with the cartels

or why drug-related charges were not included in the plea agreement.

An attorney for the former governor, Chris Flood, said at the conclusion of the hearing that his client denied involvement with drug trafficking organizations and that the details of the plea deal “clearly showed that now, almost 20 years later, the government realizes that he he had no involvement with the cartels ”.

Military clothing seized from alleged members of the 'Zetas' cartel in a file photo. AP / AP

Yarrington has agreed to hand over any interest it has in a condominium in the city of Port Isabel, in South Texas, Betancourt said.

With the plea deal,

the seizure of other property

that prosecutors were trying to seize

was dismissed

, said Chris Flood, one of Yarrington's attorneys.

[These are the properties that César Duarte bought in the United States with public money for more than 6.2 million dollars]

At the moment no hearing has been scheduled for his sentence.

Yarrington could be sentenced to between nine and more than 11 years in prison.

Prosecutors agreed to recommend a penalty close to the minimum sentence.

Organized crime groups have long taken root in Tamaulipas, and Yarrington is one in a string of governors from Mexico's Institutional Revolutionary Party who have been indicted in corruption cases in recent years.

This $ 2.5 million home located at 323 Amelia Dr in El Paso, Texas, was acquired by former Governor César Duarte Jáquez in 2017. Google Maps

US authorities have also tried to extradite Yarrington's successor, Eugenio Hernández, to face money laundering charges.

[Reform: Javier Duarte and Karime Macías accumulated more than 90 properties in Mexico, the United States and Spain]

The current governor of Tamaulipas, Francisco García Cabeza de Vaca, who belongs to the National Action Party, is being investigated on charges of organized crime, money laundering and tax evasion.

With information from The Associated Press and Efe.

Source: telemundo

All news articles on 2021-03-26

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