Fact check: Is ICE leading anti-narcotics operations in Sinaloa?

United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) announced connected Wednesday that 3 “large-scale synthetic cause accumulation labs” had been dismantled successful Sinaloa, sparking claims that U.S. agents were progressive successful the cognition successful the bluish state.

However, arsenic the United States Embassy successful Mexico and President Claudia Sheinbaum clarified, the cognition was exclusively led and carried retired by Mexican information forces.

At the halfway of the saga was a azygous connection — vetted — which was seemingly not understood oregon ignored by a important fig of radical and media organizations.

In a station to societal media connected Wednesday, ICE said that “three large-scale synthetic cause accumulation labs successful Sinaloa were dismantled with narcotics and chemic precursors seized successful an cognition led by the ICE Homeland Security Investigations vetted portion wrong the Government of Mexico, Fiscalía General de la Republica, Agencia de Investigación Criminal.”

The cognition led by the “ICE Homeland Security Investigations [HSI] vetted unit” wrong the  Criminal Investigation Agency (AIC) of the Federal Attorney General’s Office (FGR) — i.e. a squad of Mexican agents screened and certified by ICE — was “supported” by the Mexican Ministry of Defense (Sedena, oregon Defensa) and the Ministry of the Navy (Marina), ICE said.

“ICE HSI has been moving intimately with FGR-AIC, SEDENA, and MARINA to place cause precursor shipments from China and to instrumentality retired cause accumulation labs operated by the cartels successful Mexico,” the U.S. bureau said.

Three large-scale synthetic cause accumulation labs successful Sinaloa were dismantled with narcotics and chemic precursors seized successful an cognition led by the ICE Homeland Security Investigations vetted portion wrong the Government of Mexico, Fiscalia General de la Republica, Agencia de… pic.twitter.com/H9X1fafWbu

— U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (@ICEgov) May 14, 2025

“The collaboration betwixt ICE-HSI and GOM [government of Mexico] helps halt narcotics accumulation astatine the source, preventing deadly drugs from being smuggled crossed our borders and onto our streets, and making our communities much secure,” ICE said.

The societal media station includes 4 photographs, 1 of which shows 4 information unit members successful a vehicle. Some media outlets claimed that the photograph showed U.S. agents successful Mexican territory, adjacent though some the attire of the 4 men and their weapons look to beryllium akin to that worn and utilized by Mexican Criminal Investigation Agency agents.

Perhaps adding to the disorder was a consequent station to X by the HSI Houston account, which said:

“ICE HSI, Fiscalía General de la Republica’s Agencia de Investigación Criminal and Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional dismantled 3 clandestine Sinaloa Cartel cause labs and seized implicit 26,000 kilos of Chinese-sourced precursor chemicals May 10.”

That station — which appeared connected X much than 5 hours aft ICE announced the dismantling of the 3 labs — appears to bespeak that Immigrations and Customs Enforcement was straight progressive successful the cognition successful Sinaloa.

The disorder comes astatine a clip erstwhile determination is speculation that the Trump medication could nonstop U.S. forces into Mexico to combat Mexican cause cartels, six of which were designated arsenic overseas violent organizations by the U.S. authorities earlier this year.

US adds 6 Mexican cartels to database of overseas violent organizations

The United States’ caller Ambassador to Mexico Ron Johnson said successful March astatine a U.S. Senate proceeding that the U.S. subject could unilaterally instrumentality enactment against cause cartels connected Mexican ungraded if the lives of U.S. citizens were astatine risk.

Asked connected the archetypal time of his 2nd word whether helium would see “ordering U.S. peculiar forces into Mexico” to “take out” cartels, President Donald Trump said it “could happen.”

The anticipation of United States forces entering Mexico — particularly without the Mexican government’s consent — is simply a highly contentious contented successful a state that has antecedently been invaded by the U.S. and mislaid implicit fractional its territory to its bluish neighbour successful the 19th century. That is not to accidental that determination is nary enactment among Mexicans for a U.S. involution against criminals organizations successful Mexico.

One idiosyncratic successful enactment of the thought is National Action Party Senator Lily Téllez, who successful February questioned wherefore Mexico hasn’t accepted “the practice of the United States to enactment against the cartels” and asserted that “the world is that the Mexican authorities can’t combat the cartels due to the fact that if the Mexican authorities were capable to combat the cartels, it would person already done it.”

Earlier this month, Sheinbaum said she rejected an connection from Trump to nonstop the U.S. Army into Mexico to combat cause cartels.

She said she told the U.S. president: “No, President Trump. [Mexico’s] territory is inviolable, [our] sovereignty is inviolable, sovereignty is not sold.”

US Embassy refutes claims that ICE led operations successful Sinaloa  

The U.S. Embassy successful Mexico shared ICE’s station to its X relationship connected Wednesday afternoon. Above it, the Embassy published a Spanish-language translation of the ICE post.

One X idiosyncratic responded to the station with a question: “So the [Mexican] authorities is nary longer singing the nationalist anthem owed to the sovereignty thing?”

The U.S. Embassy responded to confused commenters, clarifying that it was ICE-vetted Mexican agents who carried retired the operation. (X)

That was a notation to President Sheinbaum’s repeated declarations that Mexico volition not judge immoderate usurpation of its sovereignty by the United States and truthful volition not licence U.S. agents to transportation retired oregon enactment successful operations against criminals successful Mexico.

The U.S. Embassy responded: “How? Why [do you accidental that]? The cognition was led by the FGR of the authorities of Mexico.”

In different remark connected the Embassy’s post, an X idiosyncratic wrote, successful Spanish, “thanks for doing the enactment of our government.”

“The cognition was led by the FGR of the authorities of Mexico,” the Embassy responded.

The U.S. Embassy besides refuted vigor and tv writer Manuel Feregrino’s assertion that U.S. agents were operating against transgression groups successful Mexico.

In an “information note” addressed to Feregrino, the Embassy highlighted that some its societal media post, and that of ICE, “clearly” accidental that the cause labs successful Sinaloa were dismantled by an AIC portion “vetted by ICE and HSI.”

La @USAmbMex informó a #PorLaMañana que nary hay agentes de Fuerzas Especiales estadounidenses operando en México y que el operativo para desmantelar 3 laboratorios clandestinos en Sinaloa, estuvo encabezado por agentes mexicanos de la AIC de la @FGRMexico. pic.twitter.com/sQmdb94wCS

— Ciro Gómez Leyva (@CiroGomezL) May 15, 2025

The Embassy subsequently highlighted its responses to societal media users, earlier telling Feregrino that “the proposition that ‘special United States forces are operating against transgression groups successful Mexican territory’ and the assertion that ‘the United States authorities said that its soldiers, constabulary [and] peculiar agents are operating and dismantling laboratories successful Mexico,’ … are wholly incorrect and made retired of context,” the Embassy said.

The Embassy was referring to comments Feregrino made connected the Por La Mañana vigor programme presented by high-profile Mexican writer Ciro Gómez Leyva.

Leyva posted the Embassy’s accusation enactment to his X account, and the Embassy reposted it.

Sheinbaum: No US agents enactment successful operations successful Mexico 

“That photograph that appears connected the beforehand leafage of [the newspaper] La Jornada doesn’t correspond to immoderate cognition successful Mexico,” Sheinbaum told reporters astatine her Thursday greeting property conference.

She was referring to the photograph of the 4 information unit members successful the ICE post, which La Jornada enactment connected the beforehand leafage of its Thursday variation nether a header claiming that ICE agents participated successful the cognition successful Mexico (Sinaloa) earlier this month.

Sheinbaum said that United States agencies “permanently” stock quality with the Federal Attorney General’s Office astir things specified arsenic the shipment of precursor chemicals to Mexico.

President Sheinbaum said U.S. agents nary longer enactment successful enforcement operations successful Mexico, though some countries stock intelligence. (Presidencia)

However, since erstwhile president Andrés Manuel López Obrador took bureau successful precocious 2018, nary U.S. agents coordinate oregon enactment successful operations against criminals successful Mexico, she said.

Sheinbaum highlighted that immoderate 900 clandestine cause labs person been dismantled since she took bureau past October, and acknowledged that immoderate of them were located by Mexican authorities acknowledgment to accusation provided by the United States, which has been flying drones implicit Mexico to spy connected cause cartels and hunt for cause labs.

“There is coordination [with the United States], determination is collaboration, determination is practice wrong the model of respect for our sovereignties. There is not subordination oregon information of agents from immoderate U.S. bureau successful immoderate cognition [in Mexico],” she said.

“… Things changed. Before it was precise different, during the neoliberal period,” Sheinbaum said, referring to the play betwixt 1982 and 2018.

“… And peculiarly successful the clip of [former president Felipe] Calderón, who opened up the anticipation of [United States] agencies participating successful the operations [here],” she said.

“… The United States doesn’t similar — the agencies successful peculiar — that they can’t travel successful [to Mexico] similar they came successful before,” Sheinbaum said.

“They would similar to proceed operating similar successful the neoliberal period, successful the play of Calderón,” she added.

By Mexico News Daily main unit writer Peter Davies ([email protected])