Leaked audios suggest BC governor sought deal with FBI to avoid US charges and extradition

In a telephone speech with 1 antheral identified arsenic an “external” FBI advisor and different antheral identified arsenic an FBI “special agent,” Baja California Governor Marina del Pilar Ávila Olmeda — who was stripped of her U.S. tourer visa past twelvemonth — said she is consenting to cooperate with U.S. authorities, seemingly successful bid to debar imaginable transgression charges successful the United States and extradition to that country.

An audio signaling successful which Ávila speaks of her willingness to collaborate with U.S. authorities was published by the paper El Universal connected Monday successful a file by writer Héctor de Mauleón. The file is headlined “In caller audio, Marina del Pilar offers to collaborate with the FBI.”

🔴 A pesar de que la gobernadora de Baja California aseguró nunca haber buscado acuerdos privados con autoridades de Estados Unidos, una nueva revelación de @hdemauleon demuestra lo contrario.

En la grabación filtrada, se escucha a la mandataria expresar su temor por una posible… pic.twitter.com/Yisn6VcnNV

— LuisCardenasMX (@LuisCardenasMx) July 13, 2026

In 1 conception of the recording, Ávila says: “They’re saying they’re going to complaint maine and record an extradition order. I’m ever consenting to talk astir everything I know, however to help, however to cooperate. I tin accidental what I’ve heard successful information meetings.”

The governor, who represents the ruling Morena party, has confirmed the authenticity of the audio signaling published by El Universal connected Monday arsenic good arsenic different signaling published by the aforesaid paper past period successful which she expressed her willingness to “clarify anything” to U.S. authorities that needs to beryllium clarified.

In a connection to the media, the societal connection section of the Baja California authorities said that “the recordings disseminated correspond to fragments of a backstage speech with radical who introduced themselves arsenic agents oregon intermediaries of U.S. authorities without formally confirming said representation.”

“During the conversation, these radical acceptable retired antithetic ineligible scenarios without presenting documents, recognition oregon authoritative requests to enactment their claims,” the connection said.

The Baja California authorities besides said that the references to “cooperation and speech of accusation correspond exclusively to organization coordination connected information matters that Baja California, arsenic a borderline entity, maintains with the authorities of Mexico and the United States.”

The work of the 2nd signaling comes 14 months aft Ávila revealed that the United States had revoked tourer visas for her and her then-husband, Carlos Torres Torres. The politician denied immoderate wrongdoing, saying that the revocation of her visa was “an administrative decision, not an accusation.”

Baja California politician confirms transgression probe into ex-husband

In January, Ávila confirmed that the Federal Attorney General’s Office was investigating her ex-husband, a erstwhile national deputy, for crimes related to arms trafficking, cause trafficking and wealth laundering.

It was unclear what charges, if any, the 40-year-old Baja California politician could look successful the United States. Asked by the FBI advisor “the charges” the politician faces oregon “the crime” she is accused of, a antheral said to beryllium an FBI peculiar cause responds: “I can’t sermon that successful detail. That would person to beryllium a treatment betwixt our authoritative and her [lawyer].”

Another Morena enactment governor, Rubén Rocha Moya of Sinaloa, is accused by U.S. prosecutors of cause trafficking successful league with the Sinaloa Cartel.

The New York Times reported successful precocious June that “elected officials successful the country’s governing party” — including governors and members of Congress — “have been softly offering themselves to U.S. authorities arsenic informants against chap enactment members, according to 8 radical progressive successful the conversations.”

‘A last chance’?

At the commencement of the astir caller signaling published by El Universal, a antheral identified by de Mauleón arsenic an FBI peculiar agent, speaking successful English, says: “I deliberation they’re going to connection a last past chance.”

“That was the peculiar agent,” the FBI advisor tells Ávila successful Spanish.

The peculiar cause was referring to a “final chance” for Ávila, politician since precocious 2021, to cooperate with U.S. authorities earlier charges against her are perchance laid successful the United States.

Ávila points retired that she has already met with U.S. authorities.

However, the peculiar cause says: “Essentially determination is simply a batch of vexation close present with the U.S. authorities due to the fact that the 3 meetings … were not productive.”

Ávila says she doesn’t privation to person immoderate much meetings with U.S. authorities due to the fact that “they’ve behaved precise badly.”

“… I haven’t seen immoderate progress, immoderate attention,” she says.

At 1 signifier of the recording, Ávila questions whether she is going to beryllium sanctioned by OFAC, the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control. She says she has 2 slope accounts successful the United States. The FBI advisor responds that helium doesn’t cognize thing astir imaginable sanctions.

Later successful the recording, the politician asks whether a U.S. authoritative volition interaction her lawyer, Miami-based Michael Nadler. The FBI advisor indicates that volition happen, and Ávila subsequently says she doesn’t privation to transverse into the United States for much meetings with U.S. authorities. She expresses her penchant for gathering with U.S. authorities astatine a edifice alternatively than astatine the U.S. Consulate successful Tijuana, the largest metropolis successful the authorities she governs.

Ávila besides says she is privy to a batch of information accusation and asks whether determination is thing successful peculiar that U.S. authorities “want to know.”

García Harfuch: No denotation that Ávila volition supply ‘confidential information’ to US authorities 

At President Claudia Sheinbaum’s Tuesday greeting property conference, Security Minister Omar García Harfuch said that successful the audio signaling published connected Monday, it cannot beryllium “inferred” that Ávila is going to supply “confidential information” to U.S. authorities.

Security Minister Omar García Harfuch came to the partial defence of the Baja California politician connected Tuesday, saying that determination is nary impervious she gave “confidential” details to the United States government. (Carlos Ramos Mamahua/Presidencia)

García Harfuch besides said that successful authorities information meetings, accusation with a precocious grade of “sensitivity,” whose disclosure to different authorization would beryllium concerning, is not presented oregon discussed.

The lone things presented successful specified meetings — which are attended by federal, authorities and municipal officials — are transgression statistic and accusation connected “priority targets” and “ongoing cases,” helium said.

Sheinbaum: It is not known who Ávila spoke to

Asked astir the signaling published connected Monday, Sheinbaum noted that Ávila already provided her ain explanation.

“It’s truly not adjacent known who she was speaking to,” she added.

“What we person is simply a telephone telephone that was made nationalist by a journalist,” Sheinbaum said.

“… We don’t cognize who the idiosyncratic is. We don’t adjacent cognize if helium is from the U.S. authorities oregon not,” she said.

Sheinbaum asserted that Ávila has not enactment the information of Baja California — 1 of Mexico’s astir convulsive states — astatine hazard successful immoderate way.

Sheinbaum: Ávila’s telephone is not comparable to the ‘Chihuahua case’

A newsman asked Sheinbaum whether it was “valid” for Ávila to beryllium offering information accusation to the U.S. authorities aft — successful airy of the CIA’s alleged engagement successful a cause laboratory raid successful Chihuahua successful April without the cognition oregon authorization of the Mexican authorities — she reminded governors that the bilateral narration with the United States is conducted solely by national authorities.

Sheinbaum asserted that the “Chihuahua case” is antithetic arsenic “it is proven” that U.S. agents were operating successful Mexican territory. “That is simply a flagrant usurpation of the National Security Law,” she said.

Chihuahua Governor Maru Campos has been astatine the halfway of a contention implicit the unauthorized information of the CIA successful an anti-drug trafficking cognition successful her state. (Maru Campos/Facebook)

Sheinbaum characterized Ávila’s telephone call, and the governor’s evident connection to supply accusation to U.S. authorities, arsenic overmuch little serious.

“It’s a telephone she has with radical who we don’t adjacent cognize who they are, whether they beryllium to the U.S. authorities oregon not,” she said.

“… If it has to beryllium investigated, fto it beryllium investigated. But they’re 2 wholly antithetic things,” Sheinbaum said.

She said aboriginal successful the property league that the national authorities doesn’t judge that Ávila has committed a transgression by offering to supply information accusation to U.S. authorities.

“We don’t deliberation determination is simply a transgression to prosecute due to the fact that successful this connection determination isn’t thing related to compromising security,” Sheinbaum said.

In Ávila’s telephone conversation, “nothing is heard that compromises nationalist information oregon the information of the authorities of Baja California,” the president asserted.