DOJ has indicted at least two Mexican nationals, one for smuggling illegals, the other for trafficking in drugs

EL PASO, TX - The man purported to be the so-called “money man” for the Sinalowa drug cartel has been extradited to the United States, Fox 5 San Diego reports. 

Sergio Miguel Vega Mendoza, aka “The Whip,” was handed over to U.S. authorities by the Mexican Attorney General’s Office to face drug and conspiracy charges. The transfer took place last week at the Mexico City International Airport. 

According to authorities, Vega Mendoza served as “a high-ranking member of a criminal organization in charge of coordinating, supervising and transporting large quantities of drugs for distribution in the United States” as part of the criminal Mexican cartel, the AG’s office said in a statement. 

The 51-year-old Vega will stand trial in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. 

Vega Mendoza was arrested by Mexican authorities as he was about to board a flight for Sinaloa on July 1, 2019, the AG’s office said. 

When he was arrested, Mexico said Vega-Mendoza was the chief financial operator for Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar, one of the sons of Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Loera. The jailed drug lord’s sons are known as the “Chapitos” or “Little Chapos.” 

In 2023, the Department of Justice announced a major indictment for fentanyl trafficking against 28 members of the Sinaloa cartel, including Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar, his brothers, and his half brothers. 

The U.S. government is offering a $10 million reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of Guzman Salazar. 

Meanwhile, according to Border Report, Alexis Maldonado Munoz, aka “Tarzan,” is accused of smuggling at least 20 groups of illegal aliens across the border is due to appear in federal court in El Paso this week. 

In addition to the smuggling charges, “Tarzan” is facing a more serious charge of plotting to murder someone in Mexico, a charge that carries a maximum penalty of life in prison. 

A federal grand jury in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas indicted Maldonado on a charge of conspiracy to kill in a foreign country. The grand jury alleged that Maldonado “knowingly and intentionally conspired” to commit murder by “shooting and murdering” in Mexico a person only identified by the initials E.G.R. 

Since most records have been sealed by a judge, many details of the alleged conspiracy hatched between December 28, 2023 and January 3, 2024, are not available. That practice is not uncommon when other alleged conspirators remain under investigation. 

Maldonado is still subject to a previous indictment from February on charges of conspiracy to transport aliens and bringing aliens into the country for financial gain, the outlet said. Those charges carry a maximum penalty of fines and imprisonment for no more than 10 years. 

Maldonado is to appear before U.S. District Judge Kathleen Cardone for a status hearing in connection with both indictments this week. 

Maldonado was first encountered by authorities when Border Patrol agents east of the Ysleta port of entry witnessed seven people come over the border wall. The group fled toward a nearby overpass, however were apprehended by border patrol agents. 

Maldonado eventually consented to an interview with federal investigators, where he stated he was a ‘foot guide” getting paid by a smuggling organization in Mexico a sum of 4,000 pesos ($232) per individual he successfully gets over the border wall and gets to a waiting driver. 

According to court records, Maldonado told investigators he smuggled illegal aliens into the U.S. at least 20 times, each group consisting of five to six illegals. 

Maldonado was arrested at about the same time that NewsNation was told that U.S. Border Patrol detained a La Linea “foot guide” responsible for more than 40 illegal entries into the U.S. It has never been confirmed, however, that those two are in fact the same person.