SCJN Upholds First-Ever Civil Sentence Against Lozoya: 500K Pesos to Defamed Journalist

Mexico's Supreme Court of Justice (SCJN) unanimously upheld a civil ruling ordering former Pemex CEO Emilio Lozoya Austin to pay 500,000 pesos in moral damages to investigative journalist Lourdes Mendoza Peñaloza. Lozoya had falsely accused her of receiving Odebrecht bribes during his cooperation with federal prosecutors. The First Chamber's decision represented the first final judicial sentence against Lozoya to emerge from the entire Odebrecht scandal — six years after his extradition from Spain and cooperation agreement with the FGR. Lozoya's defense team publicly criticized the ruling as 'a step backward' and 'adverse to whistleblowers', signaling they would continue challenging other pending proceedings.