Ruben Rocha Moya, the governor of Mexico’s Sinaloa state, has returned to office after facing drug trafficking charges from the U.S. government.
Rocha announced on social media on Friday that he had resumed his duties after taking leave on May 1.
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He used his office to maintain his innocence after the United States accused him of supporting a faction of the Sinaloa cartel in exchange for aid to his political career.
“Today, I return to my responsibilities as governor of Sinaloa with a clear conscience and with a strong heart and the power of truth on my side,” Rocha said.
“Without a doubt, I am and will continue to relentlessly and uncompromisingly defend my honor and that of my family.”
Rocha is one of several Mexican officials to face criminal charges or other disciplinary action under President Donald Trump’s second administration.
Since returning to office in 2025, President Trump has worked to crack down on crime across the Western Hemisphere, including labeling gangs such as the Sinaloa Cartel as “foreign terrorist organizations.”
President Trump has also hinted at military action in Mexico. He accused the country’s cartels of “orchestrating much of the bloodshed and chaos in this hemisphere” and painted the Mexican government as being overrun by criminal elements.
On April 29, the Trump administration dropped criminal charges against 10 Mexican government officials and businessmen.
Participants included a senator representing the state of Sinaloa, the state’s public security secretary, the mayor of Culiacan, and several top police officials. Rocha was among the group indicted.
A former senator, he is considered an official of the left-wing Morena party, which has become a powerful force in Mexican politics. His relationship with the party’s founder, former President Andres Manuel López Obrador, spans decades.
In an indictment, the Trump administration accused Rocha of collaborating with the Chapitos, a Sinaloa cartel faction led by the children of imprisoned kingpin Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, to win the 2021 gubernatorial election.
According to court filings, the Chapitos stole the ballots of Mr. Rocha’s election rivals and kidnapped opposition politicians.
In return, U.S. prosecutors alleged, Rocha allowed the Chapitos family to “place other corrupt officials in positions of power” in Sinaloa.
But Claudia Sheinbaum, Mexico’s president and another member of the Morena party, called on the U.S. government to provide conclusive evidence in the case.
“No Mexican citizen should be denied a fair trial, regardless of political affiliation, political affiliation or non-political affiliation, whether or not he or she is a public official. When accused, there must be evidence to support the accusation,” Sheinbaum said in May.
She also suggested that the Mexican government should take action on the incident. “What are we looking for? Simply put, is there any evidence against the vacationing governor? Submit it so the prosecutor’s office can investigate.”
Rocha explained that his decision to temporarily leave his post was a way to obtain the presence of Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office (FGR), which had launched an investigation to confirm the legitimacy of the U.S. charges.
In a social media post on Friday, Rocha suggested that the ongoing court case had proven his innocence.
“After a 112-day investigation, the Attorney General’s Office has already announced in a press conference that there is not a shred of evidence to support my involvement in any criminal activity,” Rocha wrote.
“In other words, I have not committed a crime under the constitution and legal framework of our country.”
He also praised President Sheinbaum for defending Mexico’s sovereignty from “the machinations of foreign interests and the betrayal of the far-right opposition.”
However, in a subsequent statement, Mexico’s Interior Ministry, a federal agency, appeared to contradict some of Rocha’s statements.
For example, the Attorney General’s Office explained that it “maintains open investigations related to 10 individuals designated by the U.S. Department of Justice, including the Governor of Sinaloa.”
Rocha’s return to public office was a “personal decision,” the statement added.
Still, he reiterated the Sheinbaum administration’s call for the U.S. government to be candid about the evidence against Rocha.
“The Department of Foreign Affairs has repeatedly requested the U.S. Department of Justice to provide corresponding evidence to support the allegations,” the office said.
“The Home Office reaffirms its respect for the authority of responsible agencies and due process in the development of investigations.”
