After a state hearing, FGR detained ex-prosecutor César Jáuregui on federal charges

Gilberto Loya Chávez, the acting head of the Chihuahua State Attorney General’s Office, announced via a video released early Monday morning that former state prosecutor Cesar Gustavo Jauregui Moreno is now under federal custody. The Federal Attorney General’s Office executed a federal arrest warrant against the ex-official minutes after his initial hearing concluded in state proceedings. This detention allows him to face a separate national-level judicial process distinct from the ongoing state case. The federal charge relates to allegations of treason regarding national security. On Sunday, Federal Prosecutor Ernestina Godoy stated that her office had formally charged Jauregui with this offense for allegedly permitting agents from the United States Central Intelligence Agency to operate within Mexico without federal authorization. The investigation focused on a raid conducted in April at a clandestine drug laboratory in the community of El Pinal, located in the municipality of Morelos, Chihuahua. According to Godoy, the inquiry involved more than 100 investigative acts in both field and office settings, leading to the execution of the warrant in Chihuahua on Saturday, October 17. Federal authorities argue that the operation exceeded the powers of state officials. The investigation suggests that actions were taken which fell under federal jurisdiction and that foreign agents intervened without legal basis. Godoy further claimed that Jauregui failed to promptly inform federal authorities about these events. She noted that American agents visited facilities of the State Investigation Agency on multiple occasions without justified cause. These specific accusations form part of the federal dossier and will be examined during the corresponding judicial procedures. Prior to his federal detention, Jauregui was involved in state-level proceedings for illegal exercise of public service and coalition. These charges stemmed from the same April operation in Morelos. During the initial hearing in the state process, the defense requested an extension of the constitutional deadline to determine whether he would be linked to the trial. Judge Luis Alberto Simental Ortega ruled that the former official would face this stage while remaining free, subject to specific precautionary measures. The judge scheduled the corresponding hearing for Thursday, October 22, at 10:00 AM. Loya Chavez explained that during the state hearing, the formal accusation was presented, and investigative records along with the prosecution’s claims were incorporated into the record. While the state prosecutor’s office requested preventive detention based on procedural risks, the court imposed alternative conditions instead. These restrictions include a ban on leaving the state of Chihuahua or the country, the surrender of his Mexican passport and U.S. visa, a prohibition on communicating with witnesses in the case, and a requirement to appear monthly before the authority responsible for monitoring compliance. Legal experts have raised doubts about the feasibility of proving the federal charge. Baldomero Mendoza, a professor at the National Autonomous University of Mexico law faculty and the National Institute of Criminal Sciences, noted that there have been no precedents in Mexico since Maximilian of Habsburg of an authority being linked to a process for treason. He emphasized that the crime is difficult to configure due to the precision required by Article 123 of the Federal Penal Code. Mendoza clarified that authorizing the entry of foreign agents without notifying the federation is insufficient. Two specific premises must be proven: first, that the agents were part of or received instructions and resources from the military of the foreign country; second, that they entered with the aim of declaring war on the Mexican government or overthrowing it. Mendoza pointed out that in Jauregui’s case, there is no evidence that the entry of CIA elements aimed to overthrow the federal government or submit the country to foreign rule. He described the legal requirements as relating to the permission for military forces to enter and act with the objective of waging war or regime change. Specific acts considered treason include depriving individuals of liberty to hand them over to foreign authorities, forming groups led by foreigners to invade the country, or committing belligerent acts against national territory. The penalty for this crime varies significantly, ranging from five to 40 years in prison depending on the gravity of the acts. Tulio Salanueva, a criminal law specialist at the National College of Lawyers, suggested that the Chihuahua case carries a political nuance rather than strictly penal one. He highlighted that the burden now lies with the federal agency to prove the specific elements outlined by legal scholars. In recent years, two attempts were made to file charges for treason against former presidents Felipe Calderon and Enrique Pena Nieto, as well as former secretaries Luis Videgaray and Genaro Garcia Luna. Those requests did not proceed due to a lack of precise factual grounds. Jauregui has denied participating in the intervention of foreign agents in Chihuahua, asserting that there is no proof of such involvement.