Michoacán attorney general is accused of negotiating with narcos

Nicolás Sierra Santana, leader of the armed group “Los Viagras”, accused José Martín Godoy, attorney general of Michoacán, of sending him to negotiate with Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, aka “El Mencho”, leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) so that self-defense forces would allow the criminal group to operate in the state.

In an interview Sierra, better known as “El Gordo”, said that the meetings with Godoy and El Mencho took place between October 14 and 17, 2014 but that he did not accept his conditions because he did not want to be under the cartel's command.

Do you think self-defense forces were used to remove the Knights Templar and put the Jalisco New Generation Cartel in their place?

Yes, the state attorney general's office is now collecting all the money that the Knights Templar used to charge.

He added that he is one of the eight most wanted in the state because the local government works for the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG) and El Mencho.

In a radio interview with Radio Fórmula, Godoy denied the accusations and said that Sierra's group feels threatened because they know they have infringed the law. Godoy added that the actions of the attorney general's office are institutional and are not against specific individuals or groups, but against people who contribute to violence in the state.

He also said that Carlos Rosales, known as “El Tísico” and leader of the extinct La Familia Michoacana cartel, was also used as an intermediary. Rosales was killed in 2015 at a meeting of drug traffickers in the state.

Sierra explained that before the video of the meeting with Servando Gómez Martínez “La Tuta”, former leader of the Knights Templar cartel, was released, the attorney general and his operators tried to blackmail him and demanded money to keep the videos secret.

He added that they will not give up weapons even if the state does not consider them a self-defense group and that he will not remain silent as in the past.