Mexico's Supreme Court revoked the amparo granted to former Tamaulipas governor Francisco García Cabeza de Vaca, reactivating the arrest order against him for alleged organized crime and money laundering offenses. Residing in the United States, Cabeza de Vaca denounced political persecution by Morena following his 2019 revelations about a tax evasion network. The Court's decision was backed by eight justices, with notes on the procedure.
The plenary session of Mexico's Supreme Court of Justice (SCJN) decided to revoke the amparo in review 435/2025 granted to Francisco García Cabeza de Vaca, former Tamaulipas governor for the PAN from 2016 to 2022. This ruling, presented by Justice Lenia Batres Guadarrama, allows the criminal proceedings initiated by the Attorney General's Office (FGR) to continue for offenses of organized crime and operations with illicit funds.
Eight justices, including Giovanni Figueroa Mejía and Loretta Ortiz Ahlf, voted in favor of the revocation, though they issued concurrent votes with clarifications on the methodology and the role of the control judge in issuing arrest warrants. The SCJN took up the case after the FGR challenged the previously granted amparo by the Eighth District Court in Tamaulipas.
The accusations against Cabeza de Vaca date back to 2020, when the Financial Intelligence Unit filed a complaint with the FGR. In 2021, his immunity was requested to be lifted in the Chamber of Deputies, and an arrest order was issued, which was invalidated by the SCJN's First Chamber for encroaching on state Congress powers. In October 2022, the Public Ministry requested the order again, which Cabeza de Vaca halted with an amparo, later revoked and granted anew in subsequent stages.
Recently, a federal judge denied an amparo to the former governor and four family members for various offenses. Additionally, the SCJN's Discipline Tribunal disqualified Judge Juan Fernando Alvarado López for acting partially by favoring Cabeza de Vaca with amparos.
From the United States, where he resides, Cabeza de Vaca released a video on social media stating he will fight legally in all instances. He claimed there is no formal imputation against him and that the case arose after he denounced a 'fiscal huachicol' network in 2019 involving massive tax evasion and embezzlement of public funds. He accused actors linked to Morena of driving the process for political motives, assuring he will not yield.
