Mérida.— Arturo Millet Reyes’s privileges have finally been revoked. This Thursday, November 27, at 1 p.m., the businessman returned to court, and the result was decisive: a court ordered him to remain in prison to face the second criminal case against him, case number 39/2020-5, for alleged fraud of 117 million pesos.
The ruling comes just days after Millet was arrested in connection with case number 150/2022, in which he was ordered to prison for failing to pay $2.8 million in damages, equivalent to more than 50 million pesos, an amount imposed as part of the final sentence for aggravated breach of trust.
Although Millet was already imprisoned for the first case, he remained free in this second one… until today. The prosecution requested a review of the precautionary measures to prevent him from being released and fleeing the state or the country if he paid the $2.8, as stated in case file 150/2022. The hearing was specifically convened to keep him behind bars and prevent him from evading trial.
The court agreed. Unanimously, the judges ordered justified pretrial detention, meaning that even if the businessman pays the multimillion-dollar debt from the first sentence, he will not be able to leave prison.
Millet’s situation had been under scrutiny for months. Previously, the Sixth District Court had granted him an unusual benefit by removing the electronic monitoring bracelet he was required to wear, allowing him to continue moving about freely.
According to sources involved in the case, this ruling raised many questions, as the measure was removed precisely during a period when the businessman had extensive political connections thanks to his wife, Gabriela López, who has maintained close ties with powerful groups in Yucatán and Quintana Roo.
Despite having an outstanding arrest warrant, Millet was not in hiding. According to testimonies obtained, until days before his capture, he was still “doing business” in Quintana Roo, where he even faced accusations of attempting to seize communal land with the support of local authorities.
In that state, he was also allegedly acquitted in a lawsuit for more than 120 million pesos, a decision that, according to sources in the case, came after he “pushed money” and took advantage of his close ties to Morena party officials. This background explains the general surprise that, this time, justice is proceeding without obstacles.
After today’s hearing, the businessman’s situation is clear: even if he pays the $2.8 million already demanded by the judge overseeing the execution of sentences, he will not be released, as he will now have to face the second trial in prison.
When asked about the businessman’s chances of release, a legal source was emphatic: “He can only be released if he pays.”
The Millet case continues to shake the judicial system, shedding light on years of favors, delays, political protections, and legal maneuvers that, for a long time, allowed the businessman to evade consequences.
The First Collegiate Court of Appeals confirmed that criminal case 81/2022, now case file T.C.1.E. 39/2025, has been formally filed to begin the oral trial against Arturo Millet Reyes for aggravated breach of trust, a process that had been suspended due to the amparo lawsuit 1661/2023 filed by the businessman himself. According to the indictment issued on September 7, 2025, Millet remained subject only to minimal precautionary measures: a one-million-peso bond, a partial travel ban preventing him from leaving the Yucatán Peninsula, house arrest by the CEMS (Center for Social and Mental Health Services), and bi-weekly check-ins with the court. These restrictions were set to expire in March 2026.
At the request of the plaintiffs’ legal counsel, a hearing was scheduled for November 27 at 1:00 p.m. to review these precautionary measures, based on Articles 147, 148, and 157 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Since Millet was already incarcerated at the Mérida State Prison (CERESO) – following his re-arrest on November 21 – the Court ordered his transfer under court custody, noting that his presence at the hearing was essential to resolve the request to increase the severity of the measures. This hearing was precisely the one that ended with the imposition of justified preventive detention, nullifying the previous measures and ensuring that the businessman would face the oral trial, now for fraud of 117 million pesos.
Source: Sol Yucatan
