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 News Around the Republic of Mexico | March 2008 
Mexico Delays Deportation of Reputed American Drug Trafficker Over Citizenship Questions
 Associated Press
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| | This recent undated photo released by Mexico's Public Safety Department, shows police officers escorting U.S citizen Gustavo Rivera Martinez, third from left, and three other detainees at an undisclosed location in Mexico. Mexican authorities announced Wednesday, March 12, 2008 that they have captured Rivera , reputed to be a top member of the Tijuana-based Arellano-Felix drug cartel, and say they will send him back to the United States immediately. Third from right is Pavel Kulisek, a Canadian citizen also arrested with Rivera. The names of the other two men were not made available by the authorities. (AP/Mexico Attorney General's Office | | |
Mexico City - Mexican authorities said Thursday that the deportation of a U.S. citizen alleged to be a top member of a major drug cartel was in limbo after the man said he also has Mexican citizenship.
Under Mexican law, Mexican citizens cannot be deported to another country.
Gustavo Rivera Martinez, 46, reputed to be a top member of the Tijuana-based Arellano Felix cartel, was captured Tuesday night in the state of Baja California Sur.
Authorities initially said he would be turned over immediately to agents of the U.S. government, which wants him on drug charges.
But Rivera told officials preparing his deportation that he was the son of Mexicans and has dual citizenship, said an official at Mexico's Public Safety Department who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak on the matter.
Foreign governments that wish to try a Mexican citizen must submit an extradition request, and the process can take months or even years.
Authorities are holding Rivera in a maximum-security prison in Mexico, the official said. It should take about 48 hours to verify Rivera's nationality and determine whether he can be deported.
U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration spokeswoman Eileen Zeidler confirmed that Rivera's deportation was delayed after he claimed Mexican citizenship.
The Arellano Felix cartel emerged as a drug trafficking powerhouse in the 1980s in Tijuana, across the border from San Diego, but has been weakened in recent years as leaders were killed or captured. |
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