- Vice Admiral Manuel Roberto Farías Laguna has been arrested in connection with a massive fuel theft operation in northern Mexico, marking the highest-level military detention under President Claudia Sheinbaum’s anti-corruption drive.
- The seizure of 10 million liters of fuel at the port of Tampico has exposed deep-rooted collusion between public officials, business leaders, and cartel-linked intermediaries.
Mexico’s fight against fuel theft has reached a dramatic new chapter with the arrest of Vice Admiral Manuel Roberto Farías Laguna, a senior naval figure and relative of a former navy secretary. His detention, confirmed by federal agents, follows the March 31 seizure of 10 million liters of fuel at the Gulf port of Tampico—a bust that has since unraveled a web of corruption involving business executives, government officials, and cartel-linked intermediaries.
Farías Laguna is now the highest-ranking military officer to be arrested under President Claudia Sheinbaum’s administration, which has made the crackdown on huachicol—Mexico’s term for fuel theft—a national priority. The illicit siphoning of fuel from Pemex, the state-owned oil company, has cost the country an estimated $3.8 billion over five years.
U.S. authorities have long warned that drug cartels are exploiting Mexico’s oil and gas sector to smuggle stolen fuel across the border. The DEA has flagged this tactic as a key funding stream for organized crime, with intermediaries embedded in legitimate business operations.
Federal Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch confirmed that multiple arrests were made following the Tampico seizure, including both public officials and corporate leaders. He pledged that investigations would continue, signaling that the case may expose broader institutional vulnerabilities.
Mexico’s navy, while not commenting directly on the arrest, reiterated its zero-tolerance stance on corruption. The scandal has sent shockwaves through the country’s defense establishment and raised urgent questions about oversight within Pemex and the broader energy sector.
As the detainees await further legal proceedings, the case stands as a litmus test for Mexico’s commitment to rooting out corruption—not just among cartels, but within its own ranks.
