Anti-corruption body sanctions 34 public servants; imposes disqualifications up to 20 years and fines of 1.8 million pesos

Mexico's Anti-Corruption and Good Governance Secretariat, in conjunction with the Federal Administrative Court (TFJA), has announced sanctions against 34 public servants. These penalties include disqualifications from holding public office for up to 20 years and financial fines exceeding 1.8 million pesos for serious and non-serious offenses.

The TFJA detailed that the sanctions stem from investigations conducted by Internal Control Bodies within several key government entities. These include the Federal Educational Authority in Mexico City (AEFCM), the Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development (Sader), the Secretariat of Economy (SE), the Federal Consumer Protection Agency (Profeco), the National Customs Agency of Mexico (ANAM), and the Unit for Responsibilities at the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE).

Among the cases cited, an individual at the "Emiliano Zapata" Secondary School in Mexico City received a 20-year disqualification for sexual harassment of two students in 2020. In Sader, four officials faced disqualifications ranging from one to 15 years and fines totaling over 220,000 pesos for improperly disbursing program funds without verifying beneficiaries in 2019 and 2020. The Secretariat of Economy issued a 15-year disqualification and a 1.5 million peso indemnity for authorizing paid leave without proper authority in 2022.

Further sanctions include a 10-year disqualification and dismissal for an official at Profeco who improperly assigned per diems to themselves and others for non-work-related activities in 2021. ANAM imposed one-year disqualifications on two officials for attempting to solicit an economic benefit from a user during a merchandise inspection in 2022. CFE also saw three officials receive three-month disqualifications for procedural errors.