A Mexican politician and her husband recently had their U.S. tourist visas revoked following an investigation into money laundering connected to a drug cartel, as reported by new sources.
The U.S. Justice Department’s investigation into Baja California governor Marina del Pilar and her husband, Carlos Torres, started last year. However, their visa status was only affected this past weekend, noted Mexican journalist Luis Chaparro.
Aside from losing their tourist visas, reports from Mexican news outlets Tiempo and Cadena Politica indicate that the couple’s accounts at Bank of America and Wells Fargo in San Diego have been closed due to alleged ‘suspicious activities.’
Del Pilar’s links to Mexican cartels have been questioned since 2022, when a photo emerged of her embracing alleged Sinaloa Cartel crime figure Emmanuel ‘El Botas’ Serrano while she was campaigning for mayor three years earlier.
Del Pilar’s office dismissed the past allegations, saying she’s photographed with thousands of constituents and public figures while campaigning and running the major Mexican governments.
Her Instagram account has hundreds of glamorous photos and videos with world leaders, from past and current Mexican presidents like Andrés Manuel López Obrador and Claudia Sheinbaum, to international figures like California Governor Gavin Newsom, who visited the construction of a water plant in Tijuana in 2024.
There is no suggestion Governor Newsom is connected to del Pilar or any investigation into her activities. DailyMail.com has contacted Bank of America and Wells Fargo for comment.
Chaparro claimed that del Pilar met with U.S. Customs and Border Protection and Department of Homeland Security officials at a tourism event in the resort town of Rosarito on April 28, 2024, when she was first notified of the investigation.
Marina del Pilar (center), the glamorous governor of the Mexico state of Baja California, is reportedly being investigated by the United States for money laundering, according to a report from Mexican journalist Luis Chaparro
Her Instagram account has hundreds of glamorous photos and videos with world leaders, from past and current presidents like Andrés Manuel López Obrador
Baja California Governor Marina del Pilar met with her California counterpart, Gavin Newsom, in October 2024 to tour the construction of a water plant in San Antonio de los Buenos, a borough in the border city of Tijuana
‘Both are being investigated by the United States for money laundering in an investigation involving other Baja California businessmen and officials…’ Chaparro said during his YouTube shows ‘Pie de Nota’.
He added that the US agents told her the investigation was looking into the ‘Rusos Cartel’ in Mexicali, as well as a network of individuals and businessmen from Baja California allegedly linked to members of organized crime in that region.
‘She pleaded with CBP and DHS supervisors to please not make public the actions against her and her husband and to not inform the Mexican consulate to prevent them from being leaked to the media,’ Chaparro said on his show the day after del Pilar revealed her visa status.
‘The governor requested, as a personal favor, that her actions not be communicated to the Mexican consulate or any other Mexican authority so that the information would not spread.’
Del Pilar addressed the visa ban again in a press conference Monday without making any comments over the alleged money laundering investigation or bank account closures, while also not make any reference to her husband or his visa ban.
Governor del Pilar was flanked by members of her administration and ruling party, National Regeneration Movement, while addressing the United States’ decision to revoke the tourist visas that she and her husband held
Baja California Governor Marina del Pilar with her husband Carlos Torres. Both issued statements about the revoked visas on their Facebook pages on Sunday.
‘I have been included in a consular measure, and therefore today I do not have a visa to enter the United States,’ said del Pilar while being flanked by members of her administration.
Del Pilar, who served as mayor of the border city of Mexicali from 2019 to 2021 before being elected governor in 2021, downplayed the decision made by President Donald Trump’s administration to revoke her travel rights.
‘But that does not define me. Because I am not defined by what I have or by the permits granted or withheld. I am defined by my values, my convictions, and the purpose I have embraced since I decided to dedicate my life to public service,’ said Del Pilar.
‘The fact that the United States’ State Department has canceled my visa does not mean that I have done anything wrong. It is an administrative decision, not an accusation. There is no crime. There is no misconduct.’
A photo taken in 2019 showed alleged Sinaloa Cartel cell leader Emmanuel ‘El Botas’ Serrano (third from the left) and Baja California Governor Marina del Pilar Ávila (third from the right) hugging at an event where she was campaigning for mayor of Mexicali. The picture went viral in September 2022, a year and three months after she was elected governor. Del Pilar’s office disputed allegations that she had any ties to El Bota
Marina de Pilar, the governor of the Mexican state of Baja California, said she is clear of any wrongdoings while she addressed the United States’ decision to ban the tourist visas for her and her husband
Despite Chaparro’s reports that del Pilar is aware of the reason the tourists visas were cancelled, the governor claimed otherwise.
‘The reason for this measure has not been communicated, and whatever the reason, I am calm and with a clear conscience that everything will be clarified. And yet, some have tried to turn this situation into a political weapon,’ del Pilar said.
‘I’ve never hurt anyone, and I never will. These are values that are pillars of my life and that were instilled in me at home from a very young age,’ del Pilar added. ‘So don’t look for them. There’s nothing to find out to damage my image or that of myself. To be honest, I’m surprised by this situation.’
The U.S. State Department press office said in a statement to media Monday that ‘visa records are confidential under U.S. law; therefore, we cannot comment on individual cases.’
