Ruben Rocha Moya, the governor of Sinaloa, Mexico, returned to his official duties on Friday following a three-month leave of absence. Rocha had stepped away from office after U.S. federal prosecutors filed drug trafficking charges against him earlier this year. He is the first sitting Mexican governor to be charged by the United States government.
In April 2026, U.S. prosecutors accused Rocha and nine other current and former officials of conspiring with "Los Chapitos," a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. The indictment alleges the officials assisted the group in trafficking drugs into the United States in exchange for bribes and political support. Following the announcement of these charges, Mexican authorities launched their own investigation in early May, and Rocha took leave from his post.
Upon his return Friday, Rocha released a statement on X (formerly Twitter) maintaining his innocence and asserting that Mexican authorities found no evidence to support the U.S. allegations. He characterized the legal case as a politically motivated effort to damage the leftist movement led by Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum. While Rocha has resumed his role, Mexico’s interior ministry stated that the attorney general's office is still conducting an investigation into the matter.
The scale of the case involves a sitting governor and nine other officials accused of aiding a cartel responsible for large-scale international drug trafficking. While the U.S. has frequently accused Mexican politicians of criminal ties, the direct indictment of a sitting governor represents a shift in how U.S. prosecutors target high-level political support for cartels. A U.S. State Department spokesperson did not specify how the U.S. would respond to Rocha’s return but reiterated that the cartel "could not operate without the help of corrupt officials."
A person in Sinaloa will see Rocha resume control over state administration, budgets, and law enforcement oversight effective immediately. However, the long-term impact on bilateral programs, such as joint security initiatives or trade agreements, remains dependent on the U.S. response. President Sheinbaum has previously framed the U.S. charges as foreign interference. The U.S. government has not yet provided a date for potential extradition proceedings, and Mexico has stated that Washington has not provided sufficient evidence to justify such a move. The Mexican attorney general’s investigation into Rocha and the other accused officials remains ongoing without a specified completion date.