The governor of Chihuahua, María Eugenia Campos Galván (Maru Campos), accused the governor of Baja California, Marina del Pilar Ávila Olmeda, on July 17 of committing “treason” due to leaked audio recordings in which the Morena party governor appears in conversations with alleged representatives of U.S. agencies.
“Handing over the country’s security in exchange for impunity has only one name: treason. And this isn’t just my accusation: it’s a confessed betrayal, because the Baja California state government itself acknowledged the authenticity of the recordings,” the governor stated in a message posted on her social media accounts.
Campos maintained that Ávila Olmeda “offered national security information to a foreign government to buy her personal protection” in the face of an investigation against her in the United States. The governor of Chihuahua described the events as “an open betrayal” and argued that the Baja California government itself acknowledged the authenticity of the recordings.
“I have nothing to hide, nor do I face any charges in the United States. And yet Morena points the finger at me?” the Chihuahua governor exclaimed.
In her statement, she maintained that “the true traitors to Mexico are those who made pacts with organized crime and protect those indicted by U.S. justice,” and cited as examples the case of Baja California, the situation in Sinaloa, the pilot who transported Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada—whom she claimed federal authorities “had and let go”—as well as Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha Moya, whom she said “remains unpunished.”
The governor reiterated her call to the federal government to apply the law “to its own people as they seek to apply it against the opposition,” and maintained that until that happens, the country will continue to lose security, confidence, investment, and jobs.
She also accused the administration led by Sheinbaum of resorting to “discursive acrobatics” and “smokescreens” to divert attention from these cases, and asked citizens to keep the issue on the public agenda, considering that “memory is the main weapon against impunity.”
The recordings Campos refers to were revealed by journalist Héctor de Mauleón in the most recent audios. According to the columnist, an interlocutor identified as a liaison between the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the FBI informed Ávila Olmeda of the authorization for a meeting in Panama at the end of August.
Ávila Olmeda acknowledged the authenticity of the conversations but denied negotiating “behind closed doors” or offering confidential information. He stated that his efforts were aimed at resolving the revocation of his U.S. visa, which occurred in May 2025.
For her part, Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo addressed the case on July 14, distinguishing it from the Chihuahua case, where CIA agents dismantled a drug lab in the Sierra Tarahumara. According to the mayor, the Marina del Pilar case does not, to date, involve the disclosure of sensitive security information, while the Chihuahua case, in her view, constitutes “a flagrant violation of the National Security Law” due to the presence of a foreign agency operating on Mexican territory without authorization.
Campos rejected this distinction in his statement and asserted that he faces no charges in the United States.
Campos’ message was released a day after the arrest of former Baja California governor Ernesto Ruffo Appel, who was apprehended by the Attorney General’s Office for his alleged responsibility in the crimes of organized crime and fuel smuggling, as part of an investigation into a network of alleged “tax-related fuel theft” linked to the company Ingemar, of which he is a shareholder.
Source: proceso
