Mexican authorities, with the assistance of United States law enforcement, have arrested a Romanian woman in the U.S. who was wanted in Mexico for various extortion schemes allegedly on behalf of a Mexican cartel.
Meet the CJNG, or Jalisco New Generation Cartel. They’re armed to the teeth and have military equipment and experience.
Drug cartels are paramilitary now.
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) July 18, 2020
The woman, identified only as Iulia “N,” was a Romanian national allegedly working on behalf of Cartel Jalisco New Generation (CJNG), where she had been demanding extortion payments from Mexican citizens. Mexican authorities have refused to release the woman’s last name because of a law protecting the identity of individuals accused of crimes.
Iulia was arrested in San Isidro, California, with Interpol, Mexican authorities and U.S. authorities coordinating the arrest.
Following her arrest, Iulia was flown to Mexico City and transported to a local prison to await trial, according to information released by the Attorney General’s Office in Mexico City (FGJCDMX).
Agentes #PDI de la @FiscaliaCDMX aprehendieron a una mujer perteneciente a Estados Unidos de América, por su probable participación en el delito de extorsión agravada, registrado en 2022 en un domicilio ubicado en la @AlcCuauhtemocMxhttps://t.co/kYLhDj2Caj pic.twitter.com/y11HMSmNxK
— Policía de Investigación (@PDI_FGJCDMX) March 30, 2023
A video has been shared on Twitter from investigators showing Iulia being taken into a detention center. They have also shared her mugshot.
Agentes #PDI de la @FiscaliaCDMX aprehendieron a una mujer perteneciente a Estados Unidos de América, por su probable participación en el delito de extorsión agravada, registrado en 2022 en un domicilio ubicado en la @AlcCuauhtemocMxhttps://t.co/kYLhDj2Caj pic.twitter.com/y11HMSmNxK
— Policía de Investigación (@PDI_FGJCDMX) March 30, 2023
The case against the Romanian national began in May 2022, when a woman reported being threatened by an individual on behalf of the cartel. The woman, a resident of Mexico City, stated that the individual threatening her claimed to be a part of CJNG — telling her over the phone that CJNG now controlled the region and demanding that she pay a monthly fee or face severe consequences.
The caller also provided her with an account number to make her deposits to in a timely manner, according to the victim — who said that she had made a single deposit, fearing for her life, before ultimately contacting authorities.
After being provided with the account number by the victim, investigators traced the account to Iulia and obtained a warrant for her arrest.
However, Mexican authorities have not revealed whether the suspect was actually working for CJNG, or if she was just conducting an extortion scheme on her own while pretending to work for the cartel as a cover.
The CJNG, known in Mexico as the Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación, is known for being extremely violent and have even been caught on video torching a local store during a shootout in Mexico.
LATEST ON CRISIS : MEXICO 🇲🇽 Another day of cartel violence continues in Mexico, Members of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel lead a shootout and torch a local Oxxo store while children can be heard screaming in the background. pic.twitter.com/6ihcaKW8ur
— WeThePeopleFreedomWorld (@wepeoplefreedom) August 14, 2022
