Legal proceedings regarding Casino Royale attack

A federal judge ordered the release of two former Los Zetas members, José Alberto Loera Rodríguez (known as ‘El Voltaje’) and Héctor Javier Montoya Chávez (known as ‘La Rana’), in connection with the 2011 Casino Royale attack in Monterrey. The ruling, issued by Judge Mabel Cortez Navarrete, cited errors in the original investigation and evidence collection. The 2011 attack resulted in 52 deaths.

Following the judicial resolution, Montoya Chávez was released from the Federal Center for Social Reintegration Number 14 in Durango under the legal figure of ‘libertad bajo protesta’ (freedom under protest) regarding charges of organized crime and kidnapping. Authorities were instructed to establish contact methods for future judicial notifications.

While a similar order applied to Loera Rodríguez, he remains incarcerated at the Federal Center for Social Reintegration Number 12 in Guanajuato due to other active criminal proceedings in Nuevo León. The release has drawn criticism from victims' families, who have called for transparency regarding the legal basis for the decision.