Nearly seven months after being sentenced to more than 38 years in prison for enabling Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán and other drug traffickers to operate their illicit businesses with impunity, Genaro García Luna, a former secretary of public safety in Mexico, could now face a separate case in the United States.
According to local reports, attorneys representing the Mexican government have formally asked a civil judge in Florida to issue a default judgment—a ruling made in the absence of a defendant's response—against García Luna and his wife, Cristina Pereyra. The pair are accused of transferring and investing funds in Florida that allegedly originated from acts of corruption in Mexico.
As reported by Milenio, the motion was filed in the Circuit Court of the 11th Judicial Circuit in Florida by attorneys for Mexico's Financial Intelligence Unit, which is representing the government in the case. The filing requests that Judge Lisa Walsh hold García Luna and Pereyra in contempt of court and order the forfeiture of assets acquired with the illicit funds, along with monetary compensation for damages.
The motion argues that neither García Luna nor his wife have appeared in court—either personally or through legal representation—to respond to the civil suit, which was initiated in 2021.
The attorneys argue that legal precedent establishes individuals who are sued and fail to appear in court—despite being properly served multiple times—are considered to have tacitly admitted to the allegations and forfeit their right to a trial.
Court documents state that García Luna allegedly secured more than $250 million in contracts with the Mexican government through bribery, bid-rigging, and other acts of public corruption.
"A defendant who defaults by failing to respond to the plaintiff's initial complaint admits the well-pleaded facts and consents to the relief requested in the complaint," the attorneys wrote in the filing.
According to the filing, Pereyra and other business associates of García Luna invested illicit funds in various services, assets, and properties in the state of Florida.
Prosecutors said documents show García Luna and his co-conspirators ultimately received more than $580 million through fraudulent government contracts.
Who is Genaro García Luna?
During his tenure as Mexico's top security official (2006 to 2012) García Luna was tasked with combating criminal organizations such as the Sinaloa drug cartel.
However, prosecutors say he instead collaborated with them. Court records show that, in exchange for millions of dollars in bribes, García Luna provided intelligence on law enforcement investigations, tipped off the cartel about rival groups, and facilitated the safe passage of drug shipments.
García Luna was convicted last year in a U.S. federal court of accepting bribes to protect the Sinaloa Cartel and was sentenced to more than 38 years in prison. He is the highest-ranking Mexican official ever to be prosecuted and convicted in a U.S. court. Prosecutors said his actions furthered a drug trafficking conspiracy that led to the deaths of thousands of people in both the United States and Mexico.
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