Mexican boxer Julio César Chávez Jr., son of the legendary fighter, was released from prison in northern Mexico on Sunday, August 24, after being deported from the United States. A judge in Hermosillo, Sonora, ruled that Chávez Jr. could await trial outside of custody on accusations of involvement with cartels and illegally trafficking arms into Mexico. However, he is prohibited from leaving Mexico and a three-month period has been set for further investigation into his case.

Chávez Jr.'s deportation on August 19, 2025, followed his arrest in the U.S. in July, days after a high-profile fight with Jake Paul in California. U.S. authorities had detained him for overstaying his visa and allegedly lying on a green card application. Upon his deportation, he was handed over to agents of the Federal Attorney General's Office in Sonora and transferred to the Federal Social Reintegration Center in Hermosillo.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum had confirmed the deportation and stated that Chávez Jr. was wanted in Mexico since 2023, though he had not been detained earlier because he spent most of his time in the U.S. The warrant for his arrest in Mexico pertained to alleged arms and drug trafficking and ties to the notorious Sinaloa Cartel. Mexico's Attorney General, Alejandro Gertz Manero, revealed that the investigation into Chávez Jr. had commenced in 2019.

The case against Chávez Jr. is part of a broader, ongoing investigation launched by Mexican prosecutors in 2019 against the Sinaloa Cartel. This extensive inquiry, initiated after a complaint filed by the United States, focuses on organized crime, human trafficking, arms trafficking, and drug trafficking. The investigation has led to charges against 13 individuals, including Ovidio Guzman Lopez, son of convicted drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzman, who was arrested in January 2023 and extradited to the U.S. eight months later.

Chávez Jr.'s lawyer, Rubén Fernando Benítez Alvarez, has dismissed the claims against his client as mere "speculation" and "urban legends." Nevertheless, the boxer, now 39, has a long history of personal struggles that have marred his career, including battles with addiction to various drugs, failed drug tests, suspensions, and widely criticized instances of missing weight. He was convicted of drunken driving in Los Angeles in 2012, resulting in a 13-day jail sentence. More recently, in January 2024, he was arrested on gun charges for allegedly possessing two AR-style ghost rifles, for which he was freed on a $50,000 bond on the condition that he enter a residential drug treatment facility; that case remains pending.

This high-profile legal battle unfolds at a time of increased pressure from the Trump administration on Mexico to intensify its crackdown on organized crime, a policy that has seen the cancellation of visas for notable Mexican artists and celebrities and a rise in deportations.