Attorney General’s Office (PGR) Juridical and International Affairs Prosecutor Alberto Elías Beltrán said that Mexico is reviewing the documents for the formal extradition request of former Veracruz Gov. Javier Duarte de Ochoa, which could be presented to Guatemalan authorities next week.
“We are reviewing the documents to correctly fulfill the agreement we have for extradition matters … It is probable that the formal request will be presented through diplomatic means,” he said.
In an interview with Ciro Gómez Leyva with television program, La Mañana, he said that they gathering all the evidence that must be submitted regarding the arrest warrant that was released on October 14, 2016, for accusations of organized crime and money laundering.
Other arrest warrants against Duarte de Ochoa are being examined to see if they meet the same requirements of the agreement for extradition.
“Once it is received by the Guatemalan authorities, the same documents will be presented to the fifth criminal justice court that is carrying out the extradition process, who will hold a public hearing and will announce all the crimes for which Javier Duarte will be tried before the Mexican court,” Beltrán said.
In addition, Beltrán said that the former governor could serve between 40 and 55 years in prison for the crimes he has been accused of.
“According to the criminal legislation regarding money laundering, the penalty is five to 15 years; In organized crime, in terms of the Federal Law Against Organized Crime, the penalty is 20 to 40 years,” he said.
Finally, Beltrán said that at the international level, several requests for informational legal assistance have been made in order to determine Duarte de Ochoa has assets in other countries, including the United States and Spain.
