 His father was from the state of Durango but emigrated to Sinaloa, where he met his wife, in the 1940s.The couple had eleven children, Francisco Rafael being the eldest of his seven brothers (Benjamín, Carlos Alberto, Eduardo, Ramón Eduardo, Luis Fernando, Francisco Javier) and four sisters (Alicia María, Enedina, Norma Isabel and Leticia).He also had two half-brothers, Jesús and Manuel Arellano, but their second surnames remain confidential.