Francisco Javier Roman-Bardales is in the custody of Mexican authorities. (Mexican law enforcement)
The FBI said Bardales faces charges in the Eastern District of New York relating to "several offenses for his alleged role in ordering numerous acts of violence against civilians and rival gang members, as well as his role in drug distribution and extortion schemes in the United States and El Salvador."
The Mara Salvatrucha, or MS-13, was one of eight Latin American criminal organizations declared foreign terrorist organizations by the Trump administration last month.
Bardales' transfer comes nearly a month after Mexican authorities extradited another drug cartel member to the U.S. in late February. Jesus Ricardo Patron Sanchez, 39, faces charges relating to drug trafficking in New York City for the H-2 cartel, according to federal prosecutors.
A National Guard officer monitors the border wall between Mexico and the United States on Feb. 5, 2025, in Tijuana, Mexico. (Francisco Vega/Getty Images)
"As alleged in the indictment and court filings, Sanchez was one of the principal leaders of the H-2 Drug Trafficking Organization, a brutally violent transnational criminal organization that flooded American streets with dangerous drugs and protected its operations through murder and corruption," U.S. Attorney John Durham said.
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Sanchez also directed members of the cartel to kill members of other drug trafficking organizations and additional perceived rivals, according to prosecutors.
Monday's arrest and swift handover came just weeks after Mexico handed over 29 drug cartel figures, including drug lord Rafael Caro Quintero, who was allegedly behind the killing of a U.S. DEA agent in 1985.
Mexico has also stepped up operations against the Sinaloa Cartel, a main trafficker of fentanyl to the United States. President Claudia Sheinbaum has worked to show President Donald Trump that Mexico is a reliable partner on security and immigration. The results have so far kept most of Trump’s tariffs at bay.
The Trump administration sent two other top members of MS-13 to El Salvador over the weekend, along with hundreds of Venezuelans.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Anders Hagstrom is a reporter with Fox News Digital covering national politics and major breaking news events. Send tips to Anders.Hagstrom@Fox.com, or on Twitter: @Hagstrom_Anders.
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/alleged-ms-13-leader-fbi-most-wanted-list-being-extradited-us-patel-says