President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed the departure of Rafael Marín as director of the National Customs Agency at her morning press conference this Wednesday, April 1st. Sheinbaum clarified that this movement within her cabinet had been planned from the beginning as part of an agreement with the now former director of Customs. “In effect, Rafael Marín left the general directorship of customs at the National Customs Agency. In fact, he has been there a little longer,” she specified during her conference at the National Palace. President Sheinbaum also confirmed that Rafael Marín will either become a delegate for the Welfare Programs in Yucatán or assume another position at the Secretariat of the Interior under Rosa Icela Rodríguez. Sheinbaum denied that Marín's departure from Customs was due to electoral reasons or poor management. “For all those who say it is for electoral reasons, no, or that he did a bad job; on the contrary, he did an extraordinary job. Customs increased its revenue in an impressive way in 2025, and the time that he had asked me for, that he was helping me, has come to an end,” she stated. She emphasized that Marín's management was positive, especially due to the increase in customs revenue during that period. Sheinbaum appointed Héctor Alonso Romero Gutiérrez, who served as head of the Digital Transformation Agency, as the new director of Customs. “He is a master in finance and energy markets from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland, an engineer in sustainable development from the Tecnológico de Monterrey, and holds a diploma in economic competition from the Center for Research and Teaching in Economics (CIDE),” she referred. She affirmed that the new head of the National Customs Agency will be responsible for continuing to increase revenue, as well as improving digitalization processes and incorporating new technologies. In 2025, under Marín Mollinedo's leadership, Mexico increased its customs revenue by 15.5% in real terms, even though total operations at these facilities decreased by 2.3%. Customs facilities were in the spotlight last year due to the exposure of large-scale fuel trafficking, a crime known as fiscal huachicol. He had told me that he wanted to stay for exactly one year, that he was helping me for one year.
