The sentencing of Genaro García Luna, former Secretary of Security, has generated uncertainty as his lawyer, Cesar de Castro, appealed the conviction before the U.S. court. The attorney filed an amparo against the sentence in the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, according to a document disclosed by journalist Arturo Ángel.
Genaro García Luna was sentenced by Judge Brian Cogan to more than 38 years in prison on October 16. The sentence was more lenient considering that the U.S. Prosecutor's Office had requested life imprisonment after finding him guilty of five crimes related to the Sinaloa Cartel, with which he was linked.
During the hearing, García Luna reiterated his innocence, arguing that the accusations against him were based on false information provided by criminals and the Government of Mexico. Before Judge Brian Cogan, he expressed: "I have a firm respect for the law. I have not committed any of those crimes."
The jury in New York declared him guilty the previous year of receiving multimillion-dollar bribes to protect the Sinaloa Cartel while supposedly fighting against it during his tenure in the government of Felipe Calderón. Judge Brian Cogan, in sentencing him, compared his conduct to that of Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán, stating that he led a double life.
Brian Cogan emphasized the need to set an example with García Luna's sentence to deter officials' complicity in drug cartel activities. He expressed: "You say you respect the law. The other, responsible for the crimes, exists."
