The arrest has rattled officials in Mexico City, where the governing Institutional Revolutionary Party, known as the PRI, presides over the federal government. Mr. Gutiérrez was a top financial aide to the former president of the party, Manlio Fabio Beltrones, a major power broker who has also been described as the mastermind of the embezzlement scheme, according to the documents reviewed by The Times.

The investigation has the potential to derail the party’s ambitions to maintain power in this year’s presidential elections. Corruption and impunity have been stains on the legacy of Mr. Peña Nieto, who is suffering some of the worst approval ratings in a quarter century. As the nation hurtles toward elections this summer, analysts say the PRI is growing desperate to keep a lid on any potential corruption scandals.

It is in this environment that Mr. Corral, a governor who hails from an opposition party, has set out on his crusade against corruption. Now, the governor appears to be gambling with his state’s finances to preserve his investigation.

“There is a clear intention to financially strangle the state,” Mr. Corral said.

On Monday, the governor cried foul publicly, claiming that the federal government had reneged on its commitment to Chihuahua. According to documents reviewed by The Times, the federal Ministry of Finance signed four agreements in December with officials in Chihuahua promising to transfer roughly $5 million to the state by the end of the month.

As the year’s end drew near, Mr. Corral said, the money had not arrived. To date, only one of the agreed payments, for roughly $1 million, has been sent, state officials said.

But when Mr. Corral called to inquire about the missing funds, he said, he was told a meeting in person was required to resolve the matter.

Pressed for time, and with state salaries to pay, Mr. Corral said he had been forced to take a bank loan to cover the shortfall, a costly expenditure for a state with ailing finances. Several days passed before Mr. Corral said he was able to sit down with the minister of finance, José Antonio González Anaya.