Judge denies García Luna’s request for a new trial

New York and Washington. Federal Judge Brian Cogan denied Genaro García Luna’s request for a new trial, and with that, the highest-ranking former Mexican official prosecuted in the United States now awaits the scheduled date of October 9 of this year for this same judge to hand down his criminal sentence.

In his ruling, Judge Cogan, who presided over the García Luna trial (as well as that of Joaquin El Chapo Guzmán Loera), points out that the accused was convicted of participating in drug trafficking, “in essence, the government proved that Luna (sic) accepted bribes to facilitate and profit from the activities of the Sinaloa cartel.” He recalled that among the witnesses were high-ranking members of the cartel, other convicted Mexican officials, some non-corrupt Mexican police officers and U.S. public security officials.

Cogan says the motion for a new trial fails for “numerous reasons” to prove violations in the presentation of evidence, the existence of new evidence and false testimony by some government witnesses and therefore does not merit a new trial. Furthermore, it elaborates on an attempt by Garcia Luna to bribe other inmates at the Metropolitan Detention Center where he was incarcerated to obstruct the legal proceedings against him, which undermines his arguments for a new trial. In his 15-page written ruling, the judge addresses and rejects point by point the defense arguments for its motion.

Judge Cogan rejected defense arguments that documents showing that U.S. authorities trusted García Luna when he was Secretary of Public Security were not accepted, stating that they were protocolary. He stated that “cooperation between the governments of the United States and Mexico in pursuing drug cartels has always been politically sensitive given how prevalent corruption is in Mexico” and therefore, U.S. authorities could not dare to request verification and polygraph examinations of cabinet members.

Cogan concludes that “none of these arguments” by the defense “are sufficient for a new trial, and the defendant’s request is therefore denied.”

García Luna was found guilty on February 21, 2023, at the conclusion of his four-week trial. The highest-ranking former Mexican official ever charged by the U.S. Department of Justice, he was found guilty on all five counts against him alleging that he took millions of dollars in bribes from the Sinaloa cartel in exchange for protection while he was Secretary of Public Security.