OPERATION SWARM IN CHIAPAS LEADS TO 21 ARRESTS INCLUDING CURRENT AND FORMER MAYORS OF SUCHIAPA

A joint law enforcement action known as Operation Swarm (Operación Enjambre) conducted during the early hours of Saturday in Suchiapa, Chiapas, resulted in the arrest of 21 individuals. Among those taken into custody are the current municipal president, Jorge Lorenzo Lara Cordero, and former mayor Alexis Nucamendi Gómez, alongside municipal police commanders and officers.

According to official statements from the Gabinete de Seguridad, the deployment was carried out by federal agencies including the Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional (SEDENA), the Secretaría de Seguridad y Protección Ciudadana, the Fiscalía General de la República, and the Guardia Nacional. These federal entities acted in coordination with state forces from the Secretaría de Seguridad del Pueblo and the Fiscalía General del Estado de Chiapas.

The detained officials face allegations including abuse of authority, corruption, and criminal association. The arrests of Lara Cordero, who took office under the Morena party ticket for the 2024–2027 term, and Nucamendi Gómez, representing Partido Chiapas Unido, took place in the San Esteban neighborhood of Suchiapa. Both politicians were placed at the disposal of judicial authorities to determine their legal status.

Nucamendi Gómez previously served as municipal president for the 2018–2021 and 2021–2024 terms, while Lara Cordero previously served as Director of Public Works under Nucamendi's administration prior to assuming the mayoralty.

The judicial action follows an investigation triggered by events on September 25, when state authorities conducted an anti-narcotics operation in Suchiapa that led to four arrests and the seizure of illegal substances. Following that operation, one of the suspects was unlawfully released from the municipal jail.

Subsequent investigations led to the arrest of the municipal police director, identified as Jesús Antonio "N", on September 29 for aiding in the escape. The state prosecutor's office, headed by Jorge Luis Llaven Abarca, expanded the inquiry to identify additional public servants involved in the event, culminating in Saturday's wide-scale arrests across the local administration.