Chicago ( CNN ) -- President Barack Obama 's re-election campaign said Tuesday it is returning about $ 200,000 in donations collected by two Chicago men after a newspaper report described their brother as a fugitive with alleged links to violence and corruption in Mexico . `` More than 1.3 million Americans have donated to the campaign and we constantly review those contributions for any issues , '' Obama campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt said . `` On the basis of the questions that have been raised , we will return the contributions from these individuals and from any other donors they brought to the campaign . '' The announcement came after The New York Times published a report detailing alleged ties between the two campaign donors and a Mexican casino magnate . Carlos Rojas Cardona and Alberto Rojas Cardona began raising money for the Obama campaign and the Democratic National Committee in Chicago last fall , according to the newspaper . Various members of their family gave a total of $ 200,000 due to the efforts of the men , an Obama campaign official told CNN . The two Chicago-based brothers maintain connections with a third brother , Juan Jose `` Pepe '' Rojas Cardona , a Mexican casino magnate who pleaded guilty to U.S. federal drug charges in 1994 and later jumped bail in Iowa , the New York Times said , citing public records and news reports . A 2009 U.S. State Department cable obtained by WikiLeaks alleges that Pepe Rojas had ties with violence and organized crime . Citing an anonymous source , the cable also alleges that Pepe Rojas and another brother had donated millions of dollars to political campaigns in northern Mexico , in addition to providing one candidate with a helicopter and free advertising . `` Obviously we did n't know who these folks were , and they themselves were not the guilty party , and the vet did n't go deep enough , obviously , '' David Axelrod , a senior strategist for Obama 's re-election campaign , said on MSNBC Tuesday morning . `` When we found out about these entanglements , we returned all the money that they donated and raised , and we 'll continue to do that . '' That was the right move , according to Manny Sanchez , a Chicago attorney and staunch Obama supporter . `` If it appears like it might be questionable , the smartest thing is to return the money and just back off , '' said Sanchez , who first met Carlos and Alberto Rojas at a fundraiser organized by influential Latino Democrats in Chicago last December . `` The appearance does n't look good , but I can tell you this : nothing nefarious was involved in any of the exposures I had to either of the brothers . ... The brother in Mexico , the name never came up nor did any activity with respect to this brother ever come up , '' he said . They might not have anything to do with their brother 's alleged activities in Mexico , he said . `` I step back a second and say , just because someone 's got a sibling with some issues does n't necessarily impact or reflect poorly on the siblings that are here , '' he said . Carlos , Alberto and Pepe Rojas could not be immediately reached for comment . Accounts in the Mexican magazine Proceso describe Pepe Rojas as a `` casino czar '' with numerous holdings in the industrial city of Monterrey . The magazine said he had donated millions of dollars to candidates at the state and federal level , suggesting some donations paved the way for obtaining casino licenses . Pepe Rojas pleaded guilty to federal drug charges in 1994 after authorities accused him of transporting marijuana in New Mexico . A judge granted prosecutors ' request to dismiss the indictment and close the case in 1998 . He was convicted of felony theft and forgery charges in Iowa state court two decades ago , and there is still a warrant for his arrest there stemming from a judge 's decision to revoke his probation after his 1994 federal drug arrest , Johnson County Attorney Janet Lyness said . In 1991 , authorities say , he forged and cashed hundreds of dollars worth of employee paychecks while working as the vice president of a telemarketing company , Lyness said . When an attorney requested that Iowa 's governor pardon Pepe Rojas for the state charges last year , Lyness replied that he did not deserve a pardon . `` He hurt a lot of very innocent people in his actions , '' she said Tuesday . `` He has yet to take responsibility . '' CNN 's Kevin Bohn , Gustavo Valdes , Rafael Romo , Rene Hernandez , Krupskaia Alis and Catherine E. Shoichet contributed to this report .
NEW : An attorney says he saw `` nothing nefarious '' about the fundraising brothers . Report : The fundraisers ' brother is a Mexican casino magnate . A State Department cable alleges connections with organized crime . Pepe Rojas is wanted on a warrant in Iowa after his probation was revoked .