Francisco Garduño Yáñez handed over the command of the National Institute of Migration (INM) to former Puebla governor, Sergio Salomón Céspedes, who will assume the leadership of the agency on May 1. The handover ceremony took place in an atmosphere of respect and cordiality, as highlighted by the INM when sharing photos and a video of the event on social media.
Salomón Céspedes acknowledged the work of Francisco Garduño Yáñez at the helm of the outgoing institution, while Garduño welcomed him and wished him success in his new responsibility. On May 2, a ceremony is scheduled in which Garduño will offer a public apology for the death of 40 migrant individuals during a fire at the migration station in Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua, on March 27, 2023.
Garduño's continued presence at the INM during the initial months of his mandate was part of a transition process, as explained by President Claudia Sheinbaum, who appointed Salomón to the position. On April 11, an appeals court confirmed the suspension of the criminal proceedings for alleged unlawful exercise of public service in the case of the 40 deaths during the fire in Juárez, supporting the decision of federal judge Víctor Manlio Hernández Calderón.
The court ordered Garduño to comply with various precautionary measures for 18 months, including maintaining a fixed residence, offering a public apology, taking human rights and civil protection courses, ensuring compensation for the victims, and quarterly supervising immigration detention centers. Human rights organizations have questioned the court's resolution, pointing to a case of 'impunity and selective justice.'
