SCJN Upholds First-Ever Civil Sentence Against Lozoya: 500K Pesos for Defaming Journalist

Mexico's Supreme Court (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, whom Lozoya had falsely accused of receiving Odebrecht bribes. This represented the first final judicial sentence against Lozoya to result from the entire Odebrecht scandal — six years after his extradition from Spain in 2020 and cooperation agreement with the FGR. Lozoya's defense called the ruling 'a step backward' and a setback for future whistleblowers.