Mexican authorities have arrested the mayor of Tequila in an anti-corruption sting over the alleged extortion of distillers of the town’s namesake spirit.
Diego Rivera Navarro is accused of coercing tequila producers in collusion with criminal group Jalisco New Generation Cartel, according to a Reuters report this week. Navarro was arrested yesterday (5 February) alongside three other mayors, Omar Hamid García Harfuch, Mexico’s secretary of security & citizen protection, said in a post on X.
According to Harfuch, ‘Operation Swarm’, which has been led by Mexico’s intelligence agency, had stemmed from “several citizen complaints”. He added: “These actions are being carried out within the framework of the national strategy against extortion and the fight against corruption, as instructed by the president.”
The Jose Cuervo brand’s parent company, also called Cuervo, reportedly filed a complaint in December accusing the administration of imposing unfair property tax of up to 20 times the legal rate, and attempting to shutter one of its plants.
Global Drinks Intel has contacted Cuervo for further details.
In October, Proximo Spirits, the Cuervo-owned business that handles its parent’s operations, including Jose Cuervo, outside of Mexico, booked a 4.1% dip in sales from the nine months to the end of September. The group is expected to announce details of its full-year performance towards the end of this month.
