One of the FBI’s 10 most wanted fugitives is arrested in Mexico

In a new gesture from Claudia Sheinbaum’s government toward the United States, Mexican authorities have captured Samuel Ramírez Jr., one of the FBI’s 10 most wanted fugitives, in Culiacán, in the state of Sinaloa. The arrest was made on Thursday, as confirmed by Federal Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch in a brief statement on social media. Ramírez Jr. Had been a fugitive for nearly three years, wanted for his alleged involvement in the murder of two women in late May 2023.

The detainee landed in Seattle on Thursday morning, where he was turned over to the Federal Way Police Department, according to FBI Director Kash Patel. The Mexican Secretary of Security explained that the capture was carried out “as part of international cooperation mechanisms” and emphasized that it was conducted by agents of the Ministry of Defense in coordination with those of the Navy, the Attorney General’s Office, the National Guard, his own Ministry, and the National Institute of Migration.

The capture of Ramírez Jr. Is the latest instance of joint operation between the two countries, which have experienced a tense relationship since Donald Trump’s return to the White House. The Republican president has maintained a strong focus on combating organized crime, which he has often argued controls the country. The Sheinbaum administration has sought to counter criticism by presenting strong numbers showing a decline in crime, and by carrying out the capture of major criminals. The most publicized of these was the operation that resulted in the death of Nemesio Oseguera, “El Mencho,” the powerful leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, in late February.

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