US, Mexico Pursue Sinaloa Officials Facing US Drug Charges

Authorities in Mexico and the US are pressing ahead on the crackdown against officials from the state of Sinaloa, even as Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has suggested there’s not enough evidence to extradite them.

US officials detained Gerardo Merida Sanchez, a former top security official for Sinaloa, on charges that he participated in a broad conspiracy to traffic drugs into the US. Merida Sanchez appeared in federal court in Manhattan Friday and pleaded not guilty to the charges.