Mexico’s attorney general’s office has stated that a court so far rejected attempts by boxer Julio Cesar Chavez Jr to evade arrest if deported from the United States, where he is currently detained for suspected involvement with drug trafficking.
Attorney General Alejandro Gertz, during a press conference on Sunday, disclosed that Chavez’s lawyers ‘have submitted us five or six injunctions. to have him released as soon as he sets foot in Mexico’. These, though, were rejected because Chavez “hasn’t yet been turned over to the Mexican authorities,” said Gertz.
The ruling on Chavez’s deportation would be made at an immigration hearing, which his defense attorneys claim is to take place on Monday.
Arrest and Charges
Chavez, who is 39 years old, was arrested last Wednesday in Los Angeles after U.S. authorities found him to be in the country unlawfully. After his arrest, American authorities declared on Thursday that they were proceeding with his ‘expedited removal’, also citing criminal charges he has pending in Mexico.
Mexico’s attorney general’s office verified following his arrest that a warrant is outstanding for Chavez since 2023 in relation to ‘organized crime and arms trafficking’. Chavez has also been charged with ties to the Sinaloa cartel, one of six Mexican drug trafficking organizations that have been designated as terrorist groups by the U.S.
Defense Response and Career Decline
His defense attorneys have denied all charges, claiming that the arrest is meant to ‘terrorize the community’ as part of larger crackdowns against illegal immigrants.
Chavez was arrested just days after his one-sided loss to YouTuber-turned-brawler Jake Paul in a cruiserweight bout in front of a sold-out crowd at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California.
Estranged in the past from boxing’s upper echelons, Chavez captured the WBC middleweight crown in 2011 and successfully defended it three times. His 54 victories, 7 defeats, and 1 draw are impressive, but his career has also been marked by suspensions and fines for drug test failures.
Chavez, a former world champion and Julio Cesar Chavez’s son, has lost his sporting fame in the last few years in addition to increased legal setbacks.