Mexico advances on extraditing former governor to US

Mexican authorities have informed the former governor of a state bordering Texas that they have accepted a U.S. request to extradite him to the United States to face money laundering charges.

The Foreign Relations ministry says it informed Eugenio Hernandez of the decision Friday.

Hernandez served as governor of Tamaulipas until 2010 and was arrested last October on Mexican charges of misuse of public funds. He faces U.S. charges of conspiracy to launder money in South Texas.

Defense lawyer Juan Jorge Olvera Reyes said Friday that he will seek a court order blocking the extradition.

Hernandez was a member of the ruling Institutional Revolutionary Party led by Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto.

Hernandez’s predecessor as Tamaulipas governor, Tomas Yarrington, was arrested in Italy last year and awaits extradition to Mexico.