The former official has two outstanding arrest warrants against him for separate criminal cases, according to the Mexico City Attorney General’s Office.
Simón Levy, former Undersecretary of Planning and Tourism Policy at the Ministry of Tourism during the administration of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, is being held in Portugal, President Claudia Sheinbaum confirmed.
“It seems so (he was arrested) in Portugal, I believe, and it’s based on a complaint filed against him some time ago by a private citizen in Mexico City,” the president said at the end of her morning press conference this Wednesday, October 29.
Minutes later, the Mexico City Attorney General’s Office (FGJCDMX) explained that Simón Levy was arrested in compliance with inter-institutional and international cooperation mechanisms, due to the existence of two outstanding arrest warrants against him for separate criminal cases. However, the location of the arrest was not specified.
The Mexico City agency explained that in the first case, initiated in December 2021 for environmental crimes and the responsibility of construction managers for building a property that violated regulations, Levy failed to appear at the arraignment hearings scheduled for August 2022 and August 2025, resulting in an outstanding arrest warrant.
“Although he was granted an injunction in 2022, it was later revoked because he failed to appear a second time at the arraignment hearing,” the agency specified.
In the second case, initiated in November 2021 for threats and intentional damage to property, the defendant accumulated five absences from court hearings between December 2021 and October 2022. As a result, an arrest warrant was issued on August 4, 2022, which remains in effect.
The Mexico City Attorney General’s Office (FGJCDMX) stated that the arrest resulted from an immigration alert activated due to the defendant’s frequent trips abroad.
“This action is part of the routine procedures applied when a person with an outstanding arrest warrant travels outside the country, in order to guarantee their appearance before the judicial authority,” the office added.
The Mexico City Attorney General’s Office further stated that it maintains close coordination with the Attorney General’s Office of the Republic (FGR) and the National Central Bureau of Interpol Mexico to complete the necessary legal and immigration procedures to ensure the defendant’s prosecution and the victims’ right to access justice.
“They tried to kill me,” Levy responds
For his part, Simón Levy has denied his arrest and addressed the issue on his X account. “Mexicans: I’m perfectly fine. They tried to kill me and also made up a thousand other things about me. I’m fine and in good health. I love you all, I’m going to rest today,” he wrote.
Furthermore, in a radio interview with Luis Cárdenas, he asserted that he is free in Washington, D.C. He also reiterated that he survived an attack when individuals tried to shoot him, but he was able to take refuge in his SUV.
“I’m not in Mexico: their claim that I was arrested is a smokescreen because what they really wanted was to kill me,” he declared.
Source: OEM
