A Mexican national who allegedly supplied the Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación (CJNG or Jalisco Cartel) with precursor chemicals used to manufacture controlled substances has been extradited to the US.
today from Mexico to Washington, D.C., to face trial.
Francisco Pulido Coracero, 66, was extradited from Mexico to Washington, D.C., on May 10, 2024, to face trial.
He will make his initial court appearance on May 13 before U.S. Magistrate Judge Moxila A. Upadhyaya in the District of Columbia.
In March 2021, a grand jury in Washington, D.C., charged Pulido Coracero and his co-conspirator, Carlos Algredo Vazquez, 58, with conspiracy to manufacture and distribute 500 grams or more of methamphetamine for importation into the United States, and conspiracy to distribute listed chemicals—including methylamine, nitroethane, phenylacetic acid, toluene, and acetone—to be used to manufacture methamphetamine for importation into the United States.
The indictment was unsealed in February 2023.
In July 2023, Carlos Algredo Vazquez’s brother, Javier Algredo Vazquez, 56, was convicted at trial for his role in the same drug conspiracy and sentenced on Feb. 23 to 18 years and eight months in prison.
“Precursor chemicals are the lifeblood of the Jalisco Cartel’s deadly drug trafficking operation,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland a press conference on May 10. “Today’s extradition of one of the cartel’s alleged chemical suppliers, Francisco Pulido Coracero, demonstrates the long and relentless reach of the Justice Department.
According to court documents and evidence presented at Javier Algredo Vazquez’s trial, Pulido Coracero, Javier Algredo Vazquez, Carlos Algredo Vazquez, and other co-conspirators allegedly used seemingly legitimate companies in Mexico and the United States to acquire chemicals that are used to manufacture controlled substances from companies in China, India, and elsewhere.
The chemicals were then distributed and used by the CJNG and other Mexican drug trafficking organizations to manufacture controlled substances, which were then imported into the United States.
“Pulido Coracero will now face justice for allegedly conspiring with the Jalisco Cartel, one of the two Mexican cartels responsible for the deadly methamphetamine in the United States,” said Administrator Anne Milgram of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). “The Jalisco Cartel uses a variety of tactics to obtain precursor chemicals and conceal their crimes, including hiding behind the cover of legitimate businesses, which Pulido Coracero is alleged to have done. This investigation is another example of DEA’s commitment to save American lives by stopping the Jalisco and Sinaloa Cartels.”
Mexican authorities arrested both Pulido Coracero and Carlos Algredo Vazquez in October 2023. Carlos Algredo Vazquez’s extradition to the United States is still pending.
