Mexico City, August 26 – The Attorney General of the Republic (FGR) conducted raids on two warehouses in the Miguel Hidalgo borough of Mexico City, as announced by Attorney General Ernestina Godoy Ramos. The operation is part of an ongoing investigation into a large-scale fuel smuggling network, allegedly headed by former Baja California Governor Ernesto Ruffo and linked to 24 other individuals.
FGR Secures Evidence in Mexico City Warehouses
The raids, executed under a search warrant issued by a district judge in the State of Mexico, uncovered significant evidence. Public prosecutors and FGR personnel, supported by elements from the Secretariat of Security and Citizen Protection (SSPC), seized import petitions, assembly minutes, and contracts. These documents are believed to detail the simulated operations carried out by the alleged members of the criminal organization.
Images released by the FGR depict the raided locations as mini-storage rental units with orange sliding gates, typical of self-storage facilities in the capital. Further documents related to other criminal schemes, already under investigation by the FGR, were also found hidden within these warehouses.
Godoy Ramos stated that the analysis of the seized material has provided insights into the foreign trade operations of the investigated company. This information is expected to shed more light on the modus operandi of the network and open new lines of investigation.
Nine Arrests Made in Connection with the Ruffo Case
Out of the 25 alleged members of the network, nine have already been apprehended and are facing legal proceedings. Attorney General Godoy Ramos also clarified that the FGR has not received any notification regarding a request from Ernesto Ruffo’s defense to change his precautionary measure from preventive detention to house arrest. She affirmed that Ruffo, currently held at Federal Center for Social Readaptation Number 1 (Altiplano) in Almoloya de Juárez, State of Mexico, is receiving all necessary health care and that his rights are being respected.
Recent Arrest and Previous Detainees
The most recent arrest in the case is Guadalupe Hernández Hinojosa, legal representative of Ingemar S.A. de C.V. She was linked to the process on August 12 for her alleged involvement in smuggling, organized crime with the purpose of committing hydrocarbon-related offenses, and other illicit activities in this area. Her arrest brings the total number of detainees in the railway fuel smuggling investigation to nine.
A federal judge ordered her official preventive detention and set a three-month period for the closure of the complementary investigation. Unofficial information suggests that Hernández Hinojosa had direct access to Ingemar’s finances as an authorized signatory of its bank accounts. She is also accused of making arrangements with customs to release goods with irregular documentation and signing contracts related to hydrocarbon distribution.
The individuals apprehended so far in connection with the criminal scheme are:
- Ernesto Ruffo Appel
- Ricardo Thompson Navarro
- Juan Hermilo Chávez Rodríguez
- Luis Antonio Barrientos Juárez
- José Merino Valdés Cuervo
- Adriana Magali Bárcenas Guillén
- Guillermo de la Peña Rosales
- José María de la Peña Ramos
- Guadalupe Hernández Hinojosa
Ruffo Appel, arrested on July 16 in Ensenada, is in preventive detention at Cefereso 1 “El Altiplano,” along with Thompson Navarro, Chávez Rodríguez, Barrientos Juárez, and Merino Valdés Cuervo. Bárcenas Guillén is at Cereso Nezahualcóyotl Sur, while De la Peña Rosales and De la Peña Ramos are under house arrest for health reasons.
The FGR reported on August 26 that the network has a total of 25 targets, indicating that 16 individuals remain at large.
The Fuel Smuggling Scheme Unveiled
Hours after Ruffo Appel’s arrest on July 16, Attorney General Ernestina Godoy Ramos presented the results of a complex investigation that identified the largest fuel smuggling network ever detected in Mexico.
The structure operated through Ingemar, a company specializing in port services, dredging, and port operations, founded by the former governor, and other associated firms formally engaged in importing petroleum derivatives. The scheme involved introducing fuel into the country through false or incomplete customs declarations. The network would report approximately 10,000 liters per tank car while actually transporting up to 110,000, or declare products other than hydrocarbons to evade taxes.
The fuel originated from refineries in Texas and crossed through customs in Nuevo Laredo, Ciudad Camargo, Matamoros, and Reynosa, Tamaulipas. Once in Mexican territory, it entered without customs inspection and was unloaded at railway spurs for distribution in Coahuila, Durango, and Zacatecas through seven different companies.
The investigation includes partners of the companies allegedly forming the network, logistics operators, and public servants, including customs agents and authorized personnel who purportedly facilitated the entry of products without proper inspections. Operational actions to secure the first round of arrests, including Ruffo, were carried out in Baja California, Nuevo León, Hidalgo, Tamaulipas, Coahuila, San Luis Potosí, Querétaro, and Tabasco.
Between January and July 2025, the FGR identified 162 tank cars and 4,238 irregular import operations, with an estimated damage to public finances exceeding 4 billion pesos. Additionally, the prosecutor’s office tracked movements of over 3.75 billion pesos through nearly 80 national bank accounts and exchange operations exceeding 1.386 billion dollars. This involved a scheme of bridge accounts that almost immediately transferred funds to foreign companies to obscure their origin.
Source: https://google.com/goto?url=CAESyQEB6zswFWm9Ii0yhhmCZKNfD6AagoIVCxmBbOlp59bVX60o9_UumdERcgRtiGsbM_x875kGIyZ-OOgffIxOIQXgBA_JFmY1FqtDezu2ZmPMUKXPkw6qjd1qIT9PHNrmm7GI9In3H9Mco3Z-9esla9T2BZ3cXg50mMgfe0UCk9fQAaYFPgpm58MD6bYHedf80Ywko9Cjxe2pkpiR6R8eiBVxONCHoB0gIIyoGAyz_RQrCeTzBXWmGioJzWOOcKAUwOnO8sYXWiB3xDk
