Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum rushed to defend the son of her predecessor Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (AMLO) after the U.S. Department of State revoked his visa, and various news outlets linked him to the cartel-connected illegal fuel market. Sheinbaum claimed there is no evidence of wrongdoing on the politician’s part and that the visa revocation was carried out for political purposes.
During a news conference, Sheinbaum revealed that Andres Manuel Lopez Beltran was not under investigation in Mexico in connection with the illegal fuel trade known as huachacol. As Breitbart Texas reported, Lopez Beltran recently made national headlines after revealing that the U.S. Department of State revoked his tourist visa. While no reason for the visa revocation was given, the ex-president’s son has been the topic of multiple Breitbart Texas articles for his alleged role in the smuggling of illegal fuel in and out of Mexico through a network that included top Mexican military and naval officials, as well as political figures.
This week, news outlets in Mexico reported that Lopez Beltran was mentioned in two separate statements from cooperating witnesses in connection with ongoing investigations over cartel-connected fuel trade. Additionally, various news outlets, including Latinus, have reported that friends of Lopez Beltran have been recorded claiming to have close relationships with leaders of CJNG.
Since Lopez Beltran is the son of former Mexican President AMLO, Mexico’s political elite, including Sheinbaum, has rushed to his defense, proclaiming his innocence. Earlier this week, Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office released a statement confirming that Lopez Beltran was not under investigation and that news articles tying him to the fuel trade were false, Breitbart Texas reported.
Mexico’s government’s defense of Lopez Beltran is similar to the way Sheinbaum and her government protected Sinaloa Governor Ruben Rocha Moya earlier this year. As Breitbart Texas reported, the U.S. Department of Justice announced the criminal indictment of Rocha Moya and nine of his closest political allies in April, charging them with drug conspiracy and weapons charges for their alleged role in working with the Sinaloa Cartel. Rather than help the United States with arrests and extraditions, Shenbaum publicly claimed that there was no evidence of wrongdoing on Rocha Moya’s part. Despite being a wanted fugitive, the Sinaloa governor continues to live in Mexico and is allegedly being provided with military protection.
Ildefonso Ortiz is an award-winning journalist with Breitbart News Foundation. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Brandon Darby and senior Breitbart management. You can follow him on Twitter and on Facebook. He can be contacted at Iortiz@breitbart.com.
Brandon Darby is the managing director and editor-in-chief of Breitbart Texas. He co-founded Breitbart News Foundation’s Cartel Chronicles project with Ildefonso Ortiz and senior Breitbart management. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook. He can be contacted at bdarby@breitbart.com.