President Claudia Sheinbaum responded during her morning press conference to allegations made by the head of the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Terry Cole, suggesting links between Mexican officials and cartels:
The president rejected the DEA chief’s statements, describing them as “very unfortunate,” “unsubstantiated,” and “baseless.” She maintained that these allegations contradicted the 48% reduction in intentional homicides that her government had presented as evidence of the success of its security strategy.
During her morning briefing, the president highlighted the drop in crime rates, which contradicted any accusations of alleged ties between her administration and organized crime. In Sheinbaum’s view, a government linked to a criminal group would not be able to demonstrate a decrease in murders.
The president also asserted that the statement was politically motivated. She noted that the remarks surfaced on the same day her administration reported the drop in intentional homicides—though it was clarified that Terry Cole’s comments were actually made on Monday night during the inaugural Fentanyl-Free United States Summit, rather than on Tuesday following the security report.
“I find it to be a very unfortunate statement. It is a political statement and an unsubstantiated one. There is no basis whatsoever for what he is saying,” Sheinbaum told the press.
