MEXICO CITY, Oct 21 - Mexican federal prosecutors on Wednesday charged a former state prosecutor with treason, reviving one of the most serious and rarely used crimes in Mexico's legal system.
Federal authorities allege that former Chihuahua state prosecutor Cesar Jauregui allowed US personnel to participate in an April operation against a suspected drug laboratory in the northern border state without the authorization required under Mexican law.
Jauregui, who served as Chihuahua attorney general from 2023 to 2026 and is a member of the opposition PAN party, was arrested over the weekend. A judge still must determine whether there is enough evidence to proceed with the case.
Attorney General Ernestina Godoy alleged that Jauregui improperly allowed foreign agents to carry out functions reserved exclusively for Mexico's federal government and withheld information he was required to share.
The case has drawn attention not only because of the prominence of the official involved, but also because treason laws are intended to punish conduct seen as threatening Mexico's sovereignty, national security or independence.
Treason prosecutions are exceedingly rare.
Mexico has not recorded a widely recognized conviction for the crime since 1867, when Emperor Maximilian of Habsburg was condemned and executed after the government of Benito Juarez concluded that his French-backed empire violated the country's independence and sovereignty.
Mexican law does not provide a single definition of treason, but broadly defines it as acts against the country's independence, sovereignty or territorial integrity carried out for the benefit of a foreign government, state or group.
Unlike many other crimes, treason punishes conduct that could compromise national security or subject the country to foreign influence or control, which helps explain why it has rarely been prosecuted.
Recent accusations have not resulted in final convictions. In 2024, Mexico's Attorney General's Office opened an investigation and sought to pursue treason charges against Joaquin Guzman Lopez, son of jailed drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, over the transfer of Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada to the United States.
Matias Gomez Leautaud, an analyst at Eurasia, said the charge appeared to set a precedent and prevent cooperation between state governments and the US government from occurring without federal coordination and approval. REUTERS