Grupo Tabasco Notary Validated Pemex Contract Under Scrutiny

A notary public in Tabasco, Mexico, has been linked to the establishment of Arrendo Serv, a company that secured a contract worth over 4.8 billion pesos from Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex). Arrendo Serv was incorporated in 2013 through Notary Public No. 4 of Villahermosa, Tabasco, headed at the time by Miguel Cachón Álvarez. This notary is reportedly connected to the Grupo Tabasco and Hernán Bermúdez Requena, a former state security secretary allegedly leading the criminal group La Barredora.

Public records from Tabasco show that on November 14, 2013, Miguel Cachón Álvarez, then heading Notary Public No. 4, registered the company Arrendo Serv S.A. de C.V. This revelation follows previous reporting that five notary offices in Tabasco, including Cachón Álvarez's, were involved in incorporating companies, validating property transactions, and certifying changes in ownership for firms that received substantial government contracts totaling at least 11 billion pesos.

The notary office of Miguel Cachón Álvarez was also involved in granting powers to representatives of Consorcio Crismar, a company linked to Hernán Bermúdez. Furthermore, it notarized the incorporation of Portacelis Gas and Oil, through which an association was formed with a firm owned by Amílcar Olán Aparicio, a businessman reportedly close to Andrés Manuel López Beltrán.

This specific contract, PMX-2025-98-347, was awarded directly on July 25, 2025, and is valid until December 31, 2028. It involves the leasing of 350 to 1,200 specialized vehicles for combating hydrocarbon trafficking. The contract has been reported to the Secretariat of Anti-Corruption, the UIF, SAT, and FGR due to allegations of conflicts of interest, bid rigging, and other potential crimes. Both Arrendo Serv and Impulsa Tu Ganancia, the consortium partners, reportedly reformed their corporate bylaws months after the contract was awarded.