##
President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo led her morning press conference from the National Palace on Tuesday, June 2, addressing the mounting judicial pressure facing the Sinaloa state government following recent hearings in New York. The focal point of the case is Gerardo Mérida, the former Sinaloa Secretary of Security and a retired Army general, who was arrested in Arizona on May 11 on charges of drug trafficking and conspiracy.
During a preliminary hearing in the Southern District of New York, Judge Katherine Polk described the evidence against the ten defendants as "abundant." The judge, overseeing the case under the Speedy Trial Act, granted a 60-day period for evidence processing and scheduled the next hearing for August 4. Mérida, who pleaded not guilty to charges that could result in a life sentence, appeared in court shackled and wearing a beige prison uniform.
The formal indictment, released in late April, alleges that the defendants—including Governor Rubén Rocha Moya, who is currently on leave—collaborated with the 'Los Chapitos' faction to facilitate large-scale drug trafficking. According to U.S. prosecutors, these officials received millions of dollars from the Sinaloa Cartel in exchange for protection and political support. Meanwhile, Marco Antonio Almanza Avilés, the former director of the Sinaloa Investigative Police, has publicly denied reports suggesting he had surrendered voluntarily to U.S. authorities.
On June 1, President Sheinbaum used her platform to clarify the nature of current tensions with Washington. She dismissed the notion that President Donald Trump is leading a direct offensive against her administration, attributing the pressure instead to "various groups in the United States that align with the far-right in Mexico because they disagree with our government." Additionally, the President urged the public to pay close attention to the allegations made by Gustavo Petro following the recent election results in Colombia.
Regarding domestic policy, the federal government remains in dialogue with the National Coordinator of Education Workers (CNTE), whose protest camp continues to occupy Avenida 20 de Noviembre. Sheinbaum expressed confidence that negotiations with the teachers' union would progress positively. Separately, the administration is considering suspending classes in Mexico City on June 11 for primary and secondary schools to accommodate the opening of the 2026 World Cup.
Ultimately, Tuesday’s conference took place against a backdrop of intense international scrutiny, with issues such as the status of GAESA in Cuba and the electoral vote count in Colombia also capturing media attention. The President continues to use the 'Mañanera del Pueblo' as a central hub for communicating the most significant developments of her administration on the national stage.
