“El Topo” of Los Tanzanios remanded after alleged drug handoff

A Mexico City judge ordered José Enrique “N,” known as “El Topo,” to face trial for alleged street-level drug dealing after his arrest in Iztapalapa.

The judge also imposed pretrial detention and set a one-month deadline for prosecutors to complete the additional investigation. The charge involves possession of drugs with the alleged purpose of selling them.

According to the Mexico City prosecutor’s office, officers from the capital’s Secretariat of Citizen Security were conducting surveillance in the Jacarandas neighborhood on August 26 when they allegedly saw El Topo hand a package of drugs to another man.

The officers ordered him to stop, but authorities say the suspected member of Los Tanzanios tried to escape in a car. Police detained him and seized several doses of drugs. After prosecutors presented evidence at a hearing on August 29, the judge ordered him to stand trial.