Los Alegres del Barranco to Face Criminal Proceedings After Being Accused of Glorifying Drug Trafficking

Los Alegres del Barranco, their manager and their concert promoter will face criminal proceedings for projecting images of a criminal leader during a March performance in the state of Jalisco, a judge ruled Monday (May 12). During a hearing at the Puente Grande Penitentiary in Jalisco, Mexico, the judge did not order preventive detention; the accused will be able to continue their defense in freedom.

A document from the Jalisco Prosecutor’s Office shared with Billboard Español says that the precautionary measures ordered by the judge for the six accused (including the four members of the band) include regular weekly appearances in court; the enforcement of a financial guarantee of 300,000 Mexican pesos for each of them, equivalent to 1.8 million pesos (approximately $92,000); and their stay in the state of Jalisco, meaning they will only be given permission to attend three concerts in other states previously agreed upon and return afterward.

The accusation stems from a concert by Los Alegres del Barranco on March 29 at the Telmex Auditorium in the municipality of Zapopan, where images of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, alias “El Mencho,” leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), were projected while they performed the song “El del Palenque.”

Authorities indicated that the investigation and the precautionary measures imposed by the judge will remain in effect for at least three months. Upon leaving the hearing, Luis Alvarado, spokesperson for Los Alegres del Barranco, told reporters that their fight is “for freedom of expression” and thanked those who have supported them.

Billboard Español has sent a request for comment to representatives of the band.

Los Alegres del Barranco became the first act from the regional Mexican genre to be formally accused by the Jalisco State Prosecutor’s Office of alleged glorification of criminal activities. The incident even led the U.S. to revoke work and tourist visas for the band members, as announced April 1 by U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau in a statement on X. 

The band, its representative, and the promoter are facing investigation from the Jalisco Prosecutor’s Office for four performances in different municipalities of that state in which they allegedly glorified criminal activities, according to information published on May 9 by the same office.

That same day, Los Alegres del Barranco won an injunction granted by a federal judge to sing narcocorridos in the Mexican state of Michoacán, despite the state decree prohibiting the broadcast of music or expressions that promote crime in public spaces, which went into effect in April. For now, the ruling only favors the group for having filed the lawsuit. The federal judge has set a new hearing for May 15 to determine whether to uphold or revoke the temporary suspension granted to the musical group.

“We are going to respond,” said Michoacán Governor Alfredo Ramírez Bedolla at a press conference on Monday (May 12). “Today I will submit the initiative to amend the State Penal Code, which will establish the crime of apology and now make it a criminal offense.”

Ten out of Mexico’s 32 states have implemented various bans against narcocorridos or any expression that promotes or glorifies criminal activities, though such bans have not yet become federal law.