Mexico ex-defence minister arrested in US on ‘drug charges’

Former Mexican defence minister Salvador Cienfuegos has been arrested in the United States on undisclosed charges, Mexico’s foreign minister said on Thursday. Cienfuegos, who was defence chief from 2012-2018, was reportedly on a trip with his family when he was arrested at Los Angeles airport. “The consul in Los Angeles will inform me of the charges in the next few hours. We will offer the consular assistance to which he is entitled,” Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard wrote on Twitter. The Mexican investigative magazine Proceso, quoting unnamed sources at the US Department of Justice, reported that the arrest was the result of a long-standing investigation into corruption involving drug traffickers. The Wall Street Journal newspaper, quoting an unnamed senior Mexican government official, said Cienfuegos was arrested at the request of the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). There was no immediate confirmation from the US authorities. Cienfuegos, 72, headed the defence ministry under former President Enrique Pena Nieto. style="width: 100%; height: 100%; position: absolute; top: 0; bottom: 0; right: 0; left: 0;">