US accuses Mexican judge of paying $2 million bribe to free suspected drug trafficker linked to former Olympic snowboarder | Crime in the United States

A Mexican judge has been arrested and accused of accepting $2 million in bribes in exchange for the release of a suspected Canadian drug trafficker, U.S. officials said Thursday.

Luis Benítez Alcántara was overseeing proceedings for the extradition to Mexico in 2024 of Canadian citizen Andrew Clark, accused in the United States of helping run a billion-dollar drug trafficking group allegedly led by former Canadian Olympic snowboarder Ryan Wedding, the Justice Department said in a statement.

Benítez is accused of releasing Clark after accepting the bribes, according to the statement.

Clark was arrested days after his release and deported to the United States, where he faces drug trafficking and murder charges.

The statement said Benítez, 49, was arrested in Colombia on Sunday. He is charged in a nine-count indictment with accessory after the fact. It was not immediately known whether he had an attorney.

U.S. authorities will seek Benítez’s extradition from Colombia, the statement said.

“Corrupt officials, wherever they are, who aid drug traffickers operating here at home will be brought to justice in the United States,” U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche said in the statement.

It is the latest arrest in the U.S. investigation into a multinational drug trafficking ring allegedly led by Wedding, who became a top FBI fugitive, accused of transporting cocaine from Latin America to the United States and orchestrating several murders. Wedding was arrested in Mexico earlier this year and flown to California, where he pleaded not guilty to murder and drug charges.

Dozens of people have been arrested in connection with the alleged drug ring, and authorities have seized large quantities of drugs, weapons and cash, as well as automobiles, motorcycles, artwork and jewelry worth millions of dollars during their investigation.

Clark’s attorney, Matthew Lombard, did not immediately respond to messages Thursday.