The Miss Universe Organization (MUO) announced Sunday that it will move its headquarters from Mexico City to New York, where it has been located for decades, amid legal proceedings facing the organization’s owners, Mexican Raúl Rocha and Thai Anne Jakrajutatip.
In a statement, the company that owns the popular beauty pageant announced that this decision will take effect “immediately” and seeks to “withdraw its administrative operations” from Mexico City and relocate them to the organization’s headquarters in New York, “where they have historically been based.”
“This decision stems from a thorough and responsible evaluation of the current conditions in Mexico, which do not provide a suitable or stable environment for the safe and effective operation of an international organization of this magnitude,” the statement reads, signed by Rocha, president and owner of 50% of the brand.
Raúl Rocha is being investigated by the Guatemalan Attorney General’s Office for alleged ties to organized crime, particularly drug trafficking, fuel smuggling, and arms trafficking. This case led to the Guatemalan Treasury authorities—according to official sources cited in Guatemalan media—blocking bank accounts in his name this month.
“Legal uncertainty, the current security situation, and the unfounded, politically motivated attacks that have compromised the institutional framework necessary for long-term operational stability and global projection” are some of the factors justifying the relocation of MUO’s headquarters, the document continues.
The company, the document adds, plans to relocate as many existing staff members as possible to New York and make new hires, amidst a transition that includes the departure of Mario Búcaro—former Guatemalan Foreign Minister—from his position as CEO, announced the previous day.
The relocation of the headquarters is a decision made “firmly, responsibly, and with the long-term future of the organization as the priority,” the company insists, reiterating its commitment to “institutional integrity and the protection of its 74-year legacy.”
In addition to the investigation for alleged links to organized crime, Rocha has been accused—though without evidence—of favoring Mexico’s representative, Fátima Bosch, winner of the 74th edition of the contest, held on November 21 in Bangkok.
Behind these allegations of supposed fraud is the Franco-Lebanese composer Omar Harfouch, who also threatened to take legal action against the MUO for alleged crimes such as “fraud, abuse of power, corruption, deception, breach of contract, conflict of interest, and moral and reputational damages.”
In addition, at the end of November, a Thai court issued an arrest warrant for Anne Jakrajutatip, the co-owner of the other 50% of Miss Universe, in connection with an alleged fraud case involving nearly one million euros, unrelated to Bosch’s recent victory.
The warrant was issued for her failure to appear in a criminal case, as confirmed to EFE at the time by the Bangkok South Kwaeng court, which is handling the proceedings, without providing further details.
Source: msn
