Facing drug trafficking and weapons charges, former Sinaloa state Security Minister Gerardo Mérida Sánchez on Monday appeared in the Southern District Court of New York for a hearing during which the judge described the evidence against him as “abundant.”

Mérida, who turned himself in to U.S. authorities in Arizona on May 11, is the first of 10 current and former Mexican officials accused of having links with the Los Chapitos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel to appear in court. 

Former Sinaloa Finance Minister Enrique Alfonso Díaz, who surrendered to U.S. authorities in New York on May 15, is the only other suspect in U.S. custody. 

Mérida, shackled hand and foot, was escorted into the Manhattan courtroom by U.S. sheriffs, dressed in a brown prison uniform and a gray T-shirt. 

During the 20-minute hearing, U.S. Federal Judge Katherine Polk warned about the complexity of the legal process due to the abundance of evidence against Mérida. Polk granted the lawyers for the U.S. Attorney’s Office two months to process the evidence and advance the case against Mérida Sánchez, setting the next hearing for Aug. 4.

When asked about Monday’s court hearing during her Tuesday morning press conference, President Claudia Sheinbaum — who on Sunday denounced U.S. interference in Mexican affairs — avoided making a direct comment.

“It is up to the Attorney General’s Office to analyze the case in due course,” she said.

During his first court appearance on May 15, Mérida pleaded not guilty to the charges of conspiracy to import narcotics, possession of weapons and conspiracy to possess weapons.

If convicted, Mérida — a retired Army general — could face a minimum 40-year sentence that could reach life imprisonment. 

Last month, the newspaper El Universal reported that Mérida had been accepted as a cooperating witness by the U.S. Department of Justice.

“The general provided initial information so that the U.S. government could integrate him under those conditions within the facilities where he is being held,” El Universal reported.

Mérida is being held in the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, a prison where high-profile Mexican cartel figures including Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada (a rival of Los Chapitos) and Rafael Caro Quintero are currently imprisoned. 

Other notable officials included in the April 30 subpoena are Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha, Senator Enrique Inzunza and Culiacán Mayor Juan de Díos Gámez. All three are members of the ruling Morena party and are currently on leave of absence.

With reports from W Radio, Ambas Manos, CNN en Español and Infobae