A Florida court has ruled that Genaro Garcia Luna, Mexico’s former Security Chief, must pay over $748 million to the Mexican government for his alleged involvement in government corruption. The civil case, filed by the Mexican government in September 2021, centered on Garcia Luna’s actions during his tenure as security chief from 2006 to 2012.
Garcia Luna, currently serving a 38-year prison sentence in the US for accepting bribes from the Sinaloa cartel, was accused of stealing millions in taxpayer funds. The Mexican government alleged that Garcia Luna and his wife, Linda Cristina Pereyra, concealed stolen funds and smuggled money to places like Barbados and the US. According to the initial complaint, Garcia Luna used the unlawfully taken funds to build a “money-laundering empire” and finance “lavish lifestyles” for himself and co-conspirators.
The complaint detailed that Garcia Luna’s illicit activities included purchasing real estate holdings, bank accounts, and vintage cars, such as 1960s and 1970s Mustangs. Judge Lisa Walsh in Miami-Dade County ordered Garcia Luna to pay over $748 million and his wife to pay $1.7 billion, totaling nearly $2.4 billion.
Garcia Luna’s corruption charges stemmed from his work with Mexico’s federal police and as security chief, where he allegedly accessed sensitive information to tip off the Sinaloa cartel about investigations and rival groups’ movements. In exchange, he received millions in bribes, often in the form of cash left in hiding places, including a French restaurant near the US embassy in Mexico City.
A federal jury in Brooklyn, New York, convicted Garcia Luna on drug-related charges in February 2023, and he was sentenced to decades in prison the following year. The Mexican government also alleged that Garcia Luna led a “government-contracting scheme” involving bid-tampering and dubious deals as a form of money laundering, including contracts for surveillance and communications equipment.