WASHINGTON — Mexico sent 26 high-ranking cartel figures to the United States Tuesday in the latest major deal with the Trump administration as American authorities ratchet up pressure on criminal networks smuggling drugs across the border.

Those handed over to U.S. custody include Abigael González Valencia, a leader of “Los Cuinis,” a group closely aligned with notorious cartel Jalisco New Generation or CJNG. Another defendant, Roberto Salazar, is wanted in connection to the 2008 killing of a Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy. Other prominent figures have ties to the Sinaloa Cartel and other violent drug trafficking groups.

The transfers are a milestone for the Trump administration, which is made dismantling dangerous drug cartels a key Justice Department priority. It's the second time

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