President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico said on Monday that her government would investigate a deadly crash that killed four officials, including two Americans on Sunday, after their visit to illicit drug laboratories in the northern part of the country. But she made clear the inquiry would center on whether the involvement of the Americans in the operation violated Mexico’s national security laws, not how the accident happened.
Her security cabinet, she said, had no prior knowledge of the activities involving the Americans in Chihuahua state.
“There is collaboration, there is coordination, but there are no joint operations on the ground,” Ms. Sheinbaum said at her daily news conference, drawing a firm red line that has come to define her approach to Mexico’s security ties with Washington. She added that the Americans’ presence appeared to stem from an arrangement between the U.S. Embassy and local authorities in Chihuahua state, not the federal government.
The four officials, two American and two Mexican, were killed early Sunday when their vehicle crashed while returning from an operation led by Mexico’s armed forces to dismantle clandestine methamphetamine labs in the mountains, state authorities said.
Ms. Sheinbaum said that her government has requested information from embassy officials and Chihuahua state authorities to determine whether the operation violated Mexico’s national security law, which forbids foreign agents, including U.S. military or law enforcement officials, from operating in the country without prior authorization by the federal government. American officials working directly with state-level authorities without federal approval would be in direct breach of the Constitution.
“We need to understand the circumstances under which this was taking place, and then assess the legal implications,” she said on Monday.
Eloy García, a spokesman for the Chihuahua state attorney general’s office, offered a different account, saying the Americans were in the state under a “direct agreement” with the U.S. government tied to ongoing training efforts. Such training programs, he said, are regular and do not require federal authorization.
“We have signed agreements that allow us to carry out this type of joint effort — training exercises that are ongoing, though not permanent — without needing to request authorization from the federal government,” Mr. García said.
He added that cooperation with U.S. officials, often coordinated through the embassy, has intensified in recent months as seizures of synthetic drug labs have surged. After three state agents became intoxicated last year while handling fentanyl, he said, state authorities began specialized training with their American counterparts on how to safely handle the deadly synthetic opioid.
He said he was not authorized to disclose further details of the U.S. officials who were killed in the car crash.
The incident comes at a tense moment in U.S.-Mexico relations, as President Trump has pressed Mexico to curb the flow of drugs north, especially fentanyl, at times threatening unilateral action against cartels on Mexican soil.
Ms. Sheinbaum has mounted her own crackdown in the country, with mass arrests, sending high-profile criminals to the U.S. and major drug seizures. But she has drawn a firm line on sovereignty, insisting Mexico will not accept U.S. boots on the ground or any American military campaign on its territory.
Mr. Trump has praised some of Mexico’s efforts but has continued to press for military action against cartels. In March, he called Mexico “the epicenter of cartel violence” and said criminal groups were “fueling and orchestrating much of the bloodshed and chaos in this hemisphere.”
Those killed in Sunday’s crash included Pedro Román Oseguera Cervantes, director of the State Investigation Agency, and Manuel Genaro Méndez Montes, an officer who was driving. The two Americans were assigned to the U.S. Embassy in Mexico; officials did not immediately disclose their agencies.
Ms. Sheinbaum said the embassy should clarify their roles, adding that she would ask Ronald D. Johnson, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico, to meet with Roberto Velasco, Mexico’s foreign minister, to discuss the incident.
Mr. Johnson on Sunday issued a statement lamenting the death of the American officials, but provided no details on the victims.
“This tragedy is a solemn reminder of the risks faced by those Mexican and U.S. officials who are dedicated to protecting our communities,” he said in a statement.
The crash occurred as a convoy of six government vehicles returned to the state capital through the Sierra Madre Occidental. The lead vehicle veered off the road, plunged about 200 yards down a cliff and caught fire, authorities said. All four occupants died at the scene.
Hours earlier, the team had inspected newly discovered labs used to produce methamphetamine, state authorities said.
Mr. García said there was no indication the crash was anything but an accident, citing the terrain and the long drive from the remote site.
The Sierra Madre Occidental has long been contested by rival criminal groups, including factions of the Sinaloa and Juárez cartels. The region is a key corridor for trafficking synthetic drugs north. Mr. García said the labs were likely tied to the Sinaloa cartel, a major supplier of fentanyl and methamphetamine to the United States.
Emiliano Rodríguez Mega contributed reporting.
Paulina Villegas is a reporter for The Times based in Mexico City, where she covers criminal organizations, the drug trade and other issues affecting the region.
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