A former Chihuahua prosecutor faces federal charges over a drug-lab operation involving US intelligence agents, escalating a dispute over Mexico’s national sovereignty.

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A Mexican federal judge has ordered the pretrial detention of former Chihuahua attorney general César Jáuregui Moreno on charges of treason, ruling that evidence supports allegations that he compromised national sovereignty by allowing US intelligence agents to take part in a drug-lab operation without federal authorization.

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Judge Ricardo Alfonso Santos Dorantes issued the order early Sunday after finding sufficient grounds to bring Jáuregui Moreno to trial. The former prosecutor will remain in a maximum-security prison in the State of Mexico while the case proceeds.

The charges stem from a mid-April operation to dismantle a drug laboratory in the Sierra del Pinal, in the northern border state of Chihuahua. According to Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office (FGR), agents from the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) participated without the required notification to the Foreign Affairs Ministry or the necessary legal authorizations.

Prosecutors argue that Jáuregui Moreno’s failure to act enabled armed foreign personnel to operate on Mexican territory in activities reserved exclusively for the federal government, putting national security at risk.

Luego de aportar más de 150 datos de prueba, la #FGR obtuvo auto de vinculación a proceso en contra de César “N”, ex fiscal general del estado de Chihuahua, por su posible participación en el delito de traición a la patria. pic.twitter.com/sbhM0vY6cG

— FGR México (@FGRMexico) October 25, 2026

Text Reads: After providing more than 150 pieces of evidence, the #FGR obtained an order of linkage to trial against César “N”, former Attorney General of the state of Chihuahua, for his possible involvement in the crime of treason against the homeland.

The FGR presented more than 150 pieces of evidence at the hearing. Prosecutors also cited public statements in which Jáuregui Moreno said the operation had been planned for months by Chihuahua’s State Investigation Agency and its Special Strategic Operations Prosecutor’s Office. They argued that the account pointed to information being withheld from federal authorities and shared with foreign personnel.

The defense presented documents and witness testimony to challenge the federal allegations. However, Judge Santos Dorantes upheld the charges and set a two-month deadline for investigators to complete the supplementary investigation.

Jáuregui Moreno was initially arrested in Chihuahua city on Saturday under a state-level warrant accusing him of illegally exercising public office and collusion. A local judge ordered him to stand trial on the public-office charge but did not impose pretrial detention, leaving open the possibility of his release.

On October 18, agents from the federal Criminal Investigation Agency arrested him under a separate warrant as he was leaving detention. He was transferred to Mexico City and taken to El Altiplano, a maximum-security prison in the State of Mexico. The hearing on the federal treason charge began on Saturday afternoon and was held behind closed doors.

The case has fueled tensions between state and federal authorities and sparked a wider political dispute over the Chihuahua operation. The controversy has also drawn attention to a private meeting on September 19 in Ciudad Juárez between Chihuahua Governor Maru Campos and President Claudia Sheinbaum.

Campos later disclosed details of the encounter, which involved heated exchanges over the case. She said she went public to counter rumors that she had reached a political pact or a behind-the-scenes agreement with the federal government.

Jorge Romero Herrera, national leader of the opposition National Action Party (PAN), defended Campos’s decision to disclose details of the meeting.

“She is an adult woman; she makes her own decisions,” Romero Herrera said. He also reaffirmed his party’s support for Campos and other PAN officials, including governors and mayors.