Mexico’s President Fighting to Pardon Convicted Cartel-Connected State Governor Presidencia Mexico

Mexico’s president is to release a former state governor who has been convicted in both the United States and Mexico on drug trafficking and money laundering charges.

On Sunday, Lopez Obrador spoke with news outlets in Chetumal, Quintana Roo, where he claimed he was working on getting amnesty for former governor Mario Villanueva. The Mexican president claiming the former governor was entitled to it for being an older man, Noticaribe.mx reported.

“If he wishes it, If he so wants it he has a pardon, he has amnesty from us,” Lopez Obrador said. “It is just a matter of checking technicalities, if he does not have any pending cases and he has already been sentenced then he can.”

Lopez Obrador added that Villanueva deserved amnesty because of his age and that he was already tired of “so many legal proceedings.”

Authorities in Mexico arrested Villanueva in 2001 on a drug trafficking investigation for allowing his state to be used as a cocaine corridor into Mexico. In 2010, the U.S. Department of Justice extradited Villanueva on drug trafficking conspiracy and money laundering charges. In 2012, he pleaded guilty to some of the charges and received a 17-year prison sentence. However, a U.S. judge gave him credit for time served in Mexico and adjusted his final sentence to almost 11 years in prison. After completing his sentence in the U.S., authorities sent Villanueva back to Mexico where he has been facing money laundering, drug trafficking, and organized crime charges.

Due to his poor health, judges have allowed him to spend some time under house arrest. In 2023 and most recently in June, various tribunals denied his requests for pardon and amnesties, something that Lopez Obrador claims he is trying to change.

Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart Texas’ Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..     

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