Famous Mexican boxer Julio César Chávez Jr arrested by US immigration

American immigration officers arrested the famous Mexican boxer Julio Cesar Chavez Jr, 39, and plan to deport him to Mexico where he has an active arrest warrant … for his involvement in organized crime “, US officials announced on Thursday.

Less than a week before his arrest, the former world champion of average weights was defeated by the influencer who became boxer Jake Paul in a match in California.

US officials say it is affiliated with the famous drug cartel from Mexican Sinala. His lawyer denied complaints.

“Under President Trump, no one is above the law-including world renowned athletes,” said a spokesperson for the Department of Internal Security (DHS) in a statement after his arrest.

Chavez JR was arrested by immigration and customs officers (ICE) at Studio City, Los Angeles on Thursday.

His fight against Paul was near Anaheim on Saturday. Chavez Jr is the son of the former boxing champion Julio Cesar Chavez Sr, who is considered the best boxer in the history of Mexico.

The DHS press release said that the “prominent Mexican and illegal criminal boxer” is treated for “accelerated dismissal”.

“Chavez is a Mexican citizen who has an active arrest warrant in Mexico for his involvement in organized crime and firearm traffic, ammunition and explosives,” the press release said.

He added that officials believe that he could be affiliated with the Sinaloa cartel, which President Donald Trump appointed as a terrorist organization on his first day of power in January.

Describing the alleged connection, the declaration indicates that he asked for an American permanent residence last year because of his marriage to an American citizen “who is linked to the Sinaloa cartel by a previous relationship with the now deceased son of the famous leader of the Joaquin ‘El Chapo’ Guzman”.

According to US officials, Chavez JR has been arrested and imprisoned for several offenses in the United States, many of whom involved weapons.

In January 2024, he was arrested and sentenced later for the illegal possession of an assault weapon, officials said.

In 2023, a local judge in the United States issued an arrest warrant against him for allegedly treated arms for a criminal organization. Almost a decade Eearlier in 2012, he was arrested for driving without a license under drugs or influenced alcohols.

He would also have made several fraudulent statements to the American immigration authorities in his attempts to obtain permanent residence and over-regulated a tourist visa that expired last February.

A lawyer for Chavez JR called his arrest “Nothing more than another title to terrorize the Latin community”.

Asked about the allegations of a cartel link, lawyer Michael Goldstein told NBC: “This is the first that we have never heard of these scandalous allegations.”

Two weeks before the fight against Paul, Chavez JR organized a public training in Los Angeles where he spoke to the Times of the massive increase in immigration raids that swept the city in the last month.

He said that his own coach was afraid of coming to work, due to the fear of expulsion.

“I was even afraid of telling you the truth. It is very ugly,” he said, accusing us immigration agents of “giving the community an example of violence”.

“I am from Sinaloa, where things are really ugly, and to come here, in such a beautiful country with everything … and see Trump attack immigrants, Latinos, without reason. Not being with God makes you think that you know everything. Trump made a bad decision.”

He added: “After all that happened, I would not want to be expelled.”