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Mexico extradites two drug traffickers to US

Cesar Gastelum Serrano (R) and Pedro Alejandro Rubio Perez

Mexico has extradited two drug traffickers, including a high-profile suspect to the United States, authorities say.

On Sunday, a statement released by the Attorney General's Office to the public identified the two men as Cesar Gastelum Serrano and Pedro Alejandro Rubio Perez.

Serrano was arrested by Mexican authorities in April, the statement said, adding that Rubio Perez was arrested in 2013 on drug and organized crime charges.

The US Treasury Department placed Cesar Gastelum Serrano on its wanted drug kingpin list in December, calling him "one of the most prolific cocaine suppliers for Mexico's Sinaloa Cartel," run by Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, who recently fled a maximum-security detention center in Mexico.

According to the US Treasury Department, he heads "a vast criminal network to lead a cocaine trafficking organization capable of moving tons of cocaine per week through Honduras and Guatemala to Mexico."

Last month, Mexico extradited 13 drug traffickers to the US and in return Washington planned to hand over some suspects in US jails who are wanted by the Mexican government.

Mexican fugitive drug trafficker Joaquin Guzman aka "El Chapo Guzman", is escorted by marines as he is presented to the press on February 22, 2014 in Mexico City. AFP photo

In recent years, Mexico had balked at requests from the US for the extradition of drug cartel kingpins, including El Chapo, the notorious drug lord who managed to escape a top federal prison in Mexico earlier this year.

Washington wanted the Mexican government to extradite him after his arrest in February 2014, but Mexico refused, in a bid to try him at home.

Just two weeks prior to his escape in July, the US filed an extradition request for him.


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