Latest news with #Culiacán
Fox News
08-07-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Boxing legend Julio César Chávez defends son after arrest by US immigration officials
Former boxing star Julio César Chávez defended his son on Monday following his arrest by U.S. immigration officials outside of his home in Los Angeles last week. Julio César Chávez Jr. was accused of overstaying his visa and lying on a green card application. Additionally, he has an active warrant for his arrest in Mexico for alleged arms and drug trafficking and possible ties to the Sinaloa cartel. The elder Chávez spoke to Mexican media about his son. "It's complicated, there's a lot of talk, but we're calm because we know my son's innocence," he told El Heraldo newspaper. "My son will be anything you want, anything, but he is not a criminal and less everything he's being accused of." An investigation into the younger boxer started in 2019 after a complaint filed by the U.S. against the Sinaloa cartel for organized crime, human trafficking, arms trafficking and drug trafficking, Mexico Attorney General Alejandro Gertz Manero said on Sunday. Chávez Jr.'s lawyers requested at least five injunctions in Mexico but they were all rejected because the boxer was in the U.S., Gertz Manero said. "He knows a lot of people, we live in Culiacan, it would be impossible not to know all of the people that are doing illicit stuff, but that does not mean nothing," Chávez Sr. said. "In my time I met everybody, and they did not come after me." He vowed that his son will fight the chargers if he his transferred to Mexico. Chávez Jr. was arrested days after he lost to Jake Paul in a boxing match. "Why did they let him fight? My son has been paying taxes in the United States for three years, and now in Mexico they're accusing him of money laundering," the elder Chávez added. "Yes, he knows those people, but that doesn't mean I'm a drug trafficker. Let's trust the law." Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Associated Press
07-07-2025
- Associated Press
Boxing great Julio César Chávez defends son arrested by US immigration agents
MEXICO CITY (AP) — As a professional, Julio César Chávez fought 115 times in the ring. Now, the former world champion said he was ready to fight outside of it to defend his same-name son, who was arrested by U.S. immigration agents at his Los Angeles home for overstaying his visa and lying on a green card application. The 39-year-old Chávez Junior also has an active warrant for his arrest in Mexico for alleged arms and drug trafficking and suggested ties to the Sinaloa Cartel. 'It's complicated, there's a lot of talk, but we're calm because we know my son's innocence,' the elder Chavez told El Heraldo newspaper. 'My son will be anything you want, anything, but he is not a criminal and less everything he's being accused of.' Alejandro Gertz Manero, Mexico's Attorney General, said on Sunday that the investigation against Chávez Junior started in 2019 after a complaint filed by U.S. authorities against the Sinaloa Cartel for organized crime, human trafficking, arms trafficking, and drug trafficking. 'He knows a lot of people, we live in Culiacan, it would be impossible not to know all of the people that are doing illicit stuff, but that does not mean nothing,' Chavez said. 'In my time I met everybody, and they did not come after me.' Chávez senior was considered one of the best Mexican boxers of all time; a world champion at three divisions. In the 1980s and '90s he was a huge celebrity who mixed with drug dealers. He claimed in the past to have been friends with drug lord Amado Carrillo Fuentes. Gertz Manero said Chavez Junior's lawyers have requested at least five injunctions in Mexico, which have been rejected because the boxer is still in the United States. 'Lawyers in the United States are working to see if he stays there, and we're prepared if he comes here,' Chavez senior said. 'We'll fight under Mexican law if he's transferred here.' The son's arrest came only days after the former middleweight champion lost to influencer-turned-boxer Jake Paul in a bout in Anaheim, California. The Department of Homeland Security said officials determined Chávez Junior should be arrested on June 27, the day before the fight. It was unclear why they waited to act for days after the high-profile event. 'Why did they let him fight? My son has been paying taxes in the United States for three years, and now in Mexico they're accusing him of money laundering,' Chavez senior said. 'Yes, he knows those people, but that doesn't mean I'm a drug trafficker. Let's trust the law.' ___ AP boxing:
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Yahoo
In Sinaloa's capital, news of a boxing scion's arrest and allegations of cartel ties cause unease
CULIACAN, Mexico (AP) — Inside a sports arena in Sinaloa state's capital, the crowd was sparse early on the card as young amateur boxers in puffy headgear threw punches and danced about the ring. Outside stood a bronze statue of Julio César Chávez in boxing trunks, one glove raised. The event Friday was organized by one of Chávez's brothers and 'The Legend' himself was advertised as a specially invited guest. But Chávez didn't appear. It had been a difficult week for the family. Chávez's eldest son, Julio César Chávez Jr., was arrested by U.S. immigration agents outside his home in Los Angeles on Wednesday, accused of overstaying his visa and lying on a green card application. But more significant here in Culiacan was that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security also noted that there was an active warrant for his arrest in Mexico for alleged arms and drug trafficking and suggested ties to the Sinaloa Cartel. The agency said he would be processed for expedited removal. The Legend The name Julio César Chávez in Culiacan is like saying Diego Maradona in Argentina. People stop and conversations begin. Chávez is the city's idol and source of pride, known simply as 'The Legend.' He went from a working class neighborhood along train tracks to the highest echelons of boxing fame and became a national hero. But when the questions turn to Chávez's eldest son and the Sinaloa Cartel, conversation ends and eyes avert. There was a time when many in Culiacan would speak of the cartel that carries their state's name, perhaps with euphemisms, but openly all the same, because its control was complete and for that they largely lived in peace. But since a bloody feud erupted between factions of the cartel last year, following the abduction of Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada to the United States by one of the sons of former leader Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán, it's safer to avoid any mention at all. Alleged cartel ties In the stands Friday night, the arrest of The Legend's son, was on the minds of many, but discussed only in hushed voices. Óscar Arrieta, a sports reporter in Culiacan, covers boxing and said Chávez Jr.'s arrest had had a big impact in Culiacan, largely because the 'harsh' way U.S. authorities linked him to organized crime. U.S. authorities did not detail the alleged ties between Chávez Jr. and the cartel other than to mention that he married a U.S. citizen who is the mother of a granddaughter of Guzmán. He mused at why if there had been a Mexican arrest warrant since 2023, hadn't there been any effort to capture him. He was a very public figure, active on social media and for the past six months or more, training for a highly promoted fight in California. On Friday, Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum said that he had mostly been in the U.S. since the arrest warrant was issued. 'I think it was also a way for the United States to expose the Mexican government in a way, but without a doubt much more impactful, because normally sports doesn't mix with anything else, much less with organized crime,' Arrieta said. 'An excellent person' Culiacan's boxing gyms had mostly been quiet since Thursday's announcement of Chávez Jr.'s arrest, in preparation for Friday's event. There had already been weigh-in for Friday's fights and most fighters weren't around. At one that was mostly covered outdoor spaces, teenagers tightly wrapped their wrists, bounced and shuffled, shadow boxing in a circle. Jorge Romero is a former professional boxer who trained under another Chávez brother. Now he's a trainer at Sinaloa Autonomous University. Romero said he knows Chávez Jr., regards him 'an excellent person, a great human being' who had really focused on his training ahead of his bout in California just a week ago. He expressed full support for him. Questions of ties between Chávez Jr. and organized crime, Romero said, were 'too delicate' to touch. But in general, he said boxing and the cartel walked separate paths in Culiacan. 'We don't have anything to do with organized crime,' he said. 'On the contrary, it's a clean sport, very healthy from my point of view.'
Washington Post
05-07-2025
- Sport
- Washington Post
In Sinaloa's capital, news of a boxing scion's arrest and allegations of cartel ties cause unease
CULIACAN, Mexico — Inside a sports arena in Sinaloa state's capital, the crowd was sparse early on the card as young amateur boxers in puffy headgear threw punches and danced about the ring. Outside stood a bronze statue of Julio César Chávez in boxing trunks, one glove raised. The event Friday was organized by one of Chávez's brothers and 'The Legend' himself was advertised as a specially invited guest. But Chávez didn't appear. It had been a difficult week for the family .
The Independent
05-07-2025
- Politics
- The Independent
In Sinaloa's capital, news of a boxing scion's arrest and allegations of cartel ties cause unease
Inside a sports arena in Sinaloa state's capital, the crowd was sparse early on the card as young amateur boxers in puffy headgear threw punches and danced about the ring. Outside stood a bronze statue of Julio César Chávez in boxing trunks, one glove raised. The event Friday was organized by one of Chávez's brothers and 'The Legend' himself was advertised as a specially invited guest. But Chávez didn't appear. It had been a difficult week for the family. Chávez's eldest son, Julio César Chávez Jr., was arrested by U.S. immigration agents outside his home in Los Angeles on Wednesday, accused of overstaying his visa and lying on a green card application. But more significant here in Culiacan was that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security also noted that there was an active warrant for his arrest in Mexico for alleged arms and drug trafficking and suggested ties to the Sinaloa Cartel. The agency said he would be processed for expedited removal. The Legend The name Julio César Chávez in Culiacan is like saying Diego Maradona in Argentina. People stop and conversations begin. Chávez is the city's idol and source of pride, known simply as 'The Legend.' He went from a working class neighborhood along train tracks to the highest echelons of boxing fame and became a national hero. But when the questions turn to Chávez's eldest son and the Sinaloa Cartel, conversation ends and eyes avert. There was a time when many in Culiacan would speak of the cartel that carries their state's name, perhaps with euphemisms, but openly all the same, because its control was complete and for that they largely lived in peace. But since a bloody feud erupted between factions of the cartel last year, following the abduction of Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada to the United States by one of the sons of former leader Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán, it's safer to avoid any mention at all. Alleged cartel ties In the stands Friday night, the arrest of The Legend's son, was on the minds of many, but discussed only in hushed voices. Óscar Arrieta, a sports reporter in Culiacan, covers boxing and said Chávez Jr.'s arrest had had a big impact in Culiacan, largely because the 'harsh' way U.S. authorities linked him to organized crime. U.S. authorities did not detail the alleged ties between Chávez Jr. and the cartel other than to mention that he married a U.S. citizen who is the mother of a granddaughter of Guzmán. He mused at why if there had been a Mexican arrest warrant since 2023, hadn't there been any effort to capture him. He was a very public figure, active on social media and for the past six months or more, training for a highly promoted fight in California. On Friday, Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum said that he had mostly been in the U.S. since the arrest warrant was issued. 'I think it was also a way for the United States to expose the Mexican government in a way, but without a doubt much more impactful, because normally sports doesn't mix with anything else, much less with organized crime,' Arrieta said. 'An excellent person' Culiacan's boxing gyms had mostly been quiet since Thursday's announcement of Chávez Jr.'s arrest, in preparation for Friday's event. There had already been weigh-in for Friday's fights and most fighters weren't around. At one that was mostly covered outdoor spaces, teenagers tightly wrapped their wrists, bounced and shuffled, shadow boxing in a circle. Jorge Romero is a former professional boxer who trained under another Chávez brother. Now he's a trainer at Sinaloa Autonomous University. Romero said he knows Chávez Jr., regards him 'an excellent person, a great human being' who had really focused on his training ahead of his bout in California just a week ago. He expressed full support for him. Questions of ties between Chávez Jr. and organized crime, Romero said, were 'too delicate' to touch. But in general, he said boxing and the cartel walked separate paths in Culiacan. 'We don't have anything to do with organized crime,' he said. 'On the contrary, it's a clean sport, very healthy from my point of view.'
