A drug bust that netted $205 million gave Mexican President Felipe Calderon bragging rights back in March, but has since turned into a PR nightmare.
Zhenli Ye Gon, a Chinese immigrant and Mexican national, was accused of importing tons of methamphetamine ingredients, but turned the tables by claiming that the money was actually illegal campaign cash, and that Calderon’s operatives threatened to kill him if he didn’t hide it during last year’s election.
Noticias de Oaxaca reports that his alleged ties to Calderon’s ruling National Action Party and the Mexican military have put all concerned on the defensive, and that the $205 million is now considered emblematic of government collusion with drug barons.
While Mexico’s opposition parties have called for an investigation, Ye Gon is a free man in New York City, having fled the country after being tipped off, allegedly by complicit police officers, about an impending raid on his home.
The DEA, meanwhile, won’t arrest or extradite him, saying they don’t have the proper “paperwork.”
Source:
“Drug case could backfire in Mexico”
Noticias de Oaxaca (Mexico), July 13, 2007