The son of a former governor of the western state of Michoacan, Mexico, was charged Friday with obstruction for refusing to answer questions about his meeting with a drug cartel kingpin, which was caught on tape. 

Rodrigo Vallejo Mora was jailed since last weekend and will remain behind bars, even though most defendants charged with obstruction are allowed pretrial release. 

He is charged with withholding evidence as authorities investigate his ties with major Mexican drug lords, Reuters reports. 

Mora's father, Fausto Vallejo, resigned as the governor of Michoacan in June. He was elected governor in 2011 but had his campaign marred by accusations that the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) conspired with organized crime to ensure his victory. 

He said that he resigned because of health reasons, but he stepped down at the same time he was facing harsh criticism for deploying soldiers and police to combat drug violence. 

Vallejo also faced censure after a video surfaced of his son meeting with Servando "La Tuta" Gómez, leader of the Caballeros Templarios, or Knights Templar, a drug cartel that has been causing violence in the region for a number of years. 

A second video of Mora with Gómez caused the attorney general's office to bring Mora in for questioning. 

Mora refused to talk, so the attorney general brought him to a federal judge. 

Mora told the judge that he only met with Gómez after death threats were waged against him and his brother and that he was brought to the meeting by Gómez's armed henchmen. 

While Mora said gunmen brought him to Gómez, Mora is seen in the video drinking beer and speaking with Gómez in a relaxed way. The 18-minute video shows Mora chatting with Gómez about Mexican politics. The videos have been played many times on Mexican national television. 

The videos prompted an immediate investigation with particular pressure from Vallejo's political opponents. 

The case could damage the image of the PRI, the ruling party of President Enrique Pena Nieto, who has tried to make crime-fighting a top priority. Nieto also tried to downplay the region's amount of drug violence by recently seeking to implement economic reforms. 

The Knights Templar got into a skirmish with vigilante groups in the region earlier this year, prompting Nieto to send federal troops to patrol the area. 

The Knights were created after splitting with another cartel in the region called La Familia. The Knights have controlled large areas of the state in the past few years. 

Mora's attorneys are expected to continue efforts to release him before the trial. 

José Trinidad Martínez Pasalagua, a transportation industry leader, and Jesus Reyna García, who served as interim governor in the region when Vallego took a medical leave of absence in 2013, were both arrested because of their associations with the Knights Templar.

The investigation into Mora and the politicians is ongoing.