Ex-Governor’s Cozumel Assets Freed from Embargo

Cozumel, Mexico — Two of the seven properties seized from former governor Roberto Borge Angulo have been released from embargo, according to records from the Cozumel Public Property Registry. The seizures were part of a package of asset freezes ordered seven years ago by a control judge in Chetumal at the request of the Secretary of Finance and Planning.

The properties, now released in favor of the imprisoned former official's family, are co-owned by Roberto Borge Angulo, who shares ownership with his sister Rosa Margarita Borge Angulo, his father Roberto Borge Martín, and other immediate family members.

One of the released properties is located at Avenida Juárez number 660; the other is situated at Avenida Rafael E. Melgar with Calle 5, number 399. Both properties are in Cozumel and are valued at several million pesos.

The release of these two properties, requested by the Quintana Roo Tax Administration Service, gradually relaxes the precautionary measures weighing on the former governor. Borge Angulo is currently imprisoned in the state of Morelos, accused of the crimes of embezzlement and organized crime.

Five properties remain under embargo in Cozumel, Playa del Carmen, and Chetumal. Neither the former governor nor his family may dispose of these remaining assets.

The embargoes also targeted properties belonging to Claudia Romanillos Villanueva, the former head of the now-defunct IPAE, the agency responsible for administering state patrimony. Romanillos Villanueva is accused of squandering public funds.

In July of this year, an Appellate Collegiate Tribunal in Morelos reclassified the former governor's role. The court reconsidered his status, changing it from an accomplice to a criminal leader for the crime of using resources of illicit origin. This charge stems from the unlawful transfer of 22 properties, which caused damage to the public patrimony exceeding 900 million pesos.

In 2023, a control judge from the Federal Criminal Justice Center in Almoloya ruled to formally charge Borge Angulo for this crime but clarified that he was not considered the leader of the criminal band composed of public servants who were responsible for squandering public assets.