Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office (FGR) claims former world champion boxer Julio Cesar Chavez Jr. was a “henchman” of the Sinaloa Cartel.
Chavez Jr., 39, was taken into custody Thursday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in Studio City, Calif., for what the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said was an active warrant out of Mexico. According to a report from Mexican newspaper Reforma (via Mi Morelia), Chavez Jr. allegedly punished members of the Sinaloa Cartel by beating them up under the direction of a leader, Nestor Ernesto Perez Salas, aka “El Nini.”
An indictment states FGR intercepted phone calls between December 2021 and June 2022, which detailed how “El Nini” ordered subordinates who made mistakes to be tied up and hanged so Chavez Jr. could beat them “like a punching bag.” Wiretaps of alleged drug traffickers and immigration records shared by U.S. agencies were presented as evidence.
Chavez Jr. is to be deported to Mexico, although no date has been set. The U.S. government claims he has ties to the Sinaloa Cartel in addition to improper documents to remain in the country legally.
Chavez Jr. lost a unanimous decision to YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul on June 28 in a 10-round bout in Anaheim, Calif.
