A Baja California judge formally charged former Governor Jaime Bonilla Valdez with abuse of authority, embezzlement, and unlawful use of official powers in connection with a failed solar plant project in Mexicali. Judge Gerardo Anguiano Ceja ruled after a 10-hour hearing on March 19 that sufficient evidence existed to proceed with the solar plant case against the former state leader.
Next Energy Contract at the Center of Charges
The charges stem from a contract Bonilla’s administration signed in 2021 with U.S. developer Next Energy to build a 100-megawatt photovoltaic plant in Mexicali. Prosecutors allege Bonilla used his constitutional powers to structure a deal that lacked federal permits and would have burdened the state with debt for three decades. The project was meant to supply energy to the Colorado River-Tijuana Aqueduct, which Bonilla said would give Baja California “energy sovereignty.”
Construction never began. Yet the state made advance payments totaling 123 million pesos ($6.8 million USD) to Next Energy, and investigators have said the project’s cost was roughly 200% higher than comparable solar installations.
Ten Defendants, Years of Legal Maneuvering
Bonilla is the highest-profile figure among 10 defendants in the sprawling case. Six former public servants from his 2019 to 2021 administration also face charges, along with two private citizens linked to Next Energy. Two fiduciary delegates from the bank involved in financing the deal, fugitives since 2023, were apprehended earlier this year.
Bonilla had previously avoided indictment in 2022 because he held constitutional immunity as a sitting senator. Baja California Attorney General Ricardo Iván Carpio said at the time that prosecutors sought prison terms of up to 16 years and a 20-year ban from public office for those involved.
In December 2025, Baja California’s State Administrative Court separately barred Bonilla from holding public office for three years, classifying his role in the Next Energy deal as a serious administrative offense. The criminal charges filed this week escalate the legal consequences he faces.
Court to Decide on Formal Trial
The court is expected to rule next on whether to formally bind Bonilla to trial. Bonilla, known for his blunt populist style, joked to reporters outside the hearing about a recent power outage: “Maybe if we’d had that solar plant, the power wouldn’t have gone out where we were.” The case dates back more than four years and now enters its most consequential phase, according to Zeta Tijuana.