Cancun Migration Chief Removed Over 935 Fraudulent Documents

Cancún, Quintana Roo — Retired Rear Admiral Carlos Manuel Bandala González has been removed as head of the National Immigration Institute’s (INM) representation office in Quintana Roo after prosecutors linked him to an investigation into alleged human trafficking and the irregular issuance of immigration documents.

His ouster from the agency’s offices in Cancún required the presence of police, according to local reports.

The case stems from a two-year investigation in which authorities identified 935 files containing false or irregularly issued documents, mainly for Cuban and Venezuelan citizens. Investigators allege that each procedure cost between 10,000 and 15,000 pesos, with some reaching $5,000. If the lower estimate is applied to all files, the operation may have moved between 9.3 million and 14 million pesos.

Among the most serious lines of investigation is the alleged simulation of births in Mexico using forged birth certificates, allowing foreign nationals to fraudulently claim Mexican nationality before the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs.

Some of the cases involve underage women, raising the possibility of a link to human trafficking. Officials have not disclosed how many of the 935 files fall into that category.

Bandala González took charge of the INM delegation in Quintana Roo in January 2023, with direct responsibility for Cancún International Airport, which handled 29.3 million passengers in 2025, about 19.5 million of them on international flights.

Mauricio Alejandro Patiño has taken over as head of the Cancún office. The INM had not issued an official statement as of this report.