Authorities have confirmed the arrest of Mayor Diego Rivera alongside Tequila’s security director and the heads of public works and land registry.
The group are accused of leading a racketeering ring that has targeted beer and tequila producers in the municipality.
Federal security minister Omar García Harfuch said in a statement on social media: “Following Operation Enjambre, in which three municipal presidents from the State of Mexico were arrested, and as a result of several citizen complaints, Diego ‘N’, municipal president of Tequila, Jalisco, was arrested in Jalisco.
“Three other public servants from the city council were also arrested: the Director of Public Safety, the Director of Land Registry and Property Tax, and the Director of Public Works.
“These actions are being carried out within the framework of the National Strategy against Extortion and the fight against corruption instructed by President Claudia Sheinbaum.”
Investigators said that Becle, the producer of Jose Cuervo was targeted in the scheme, and has filed a complaint accusing the mayor's administration of withholding permits, imposing a property tax of up to 20 times the legal rate and a fine of more than 60 million pesos ($3.45 million) in an attempt to close one of the company’s plants.
The Jalisco governor has said at least 10 companies have filed complaints against the local administration.
Officials allege that Rivera was also diverting public funds and collaborating with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel. The Mayor had previously come under fire after a local concert featured projected images of the cartel’s fugitive leader, Nemesio Oseguera "El Mencho."
