Mexican authorities have apprehended Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, the notorious co-founder of the Sinaloa cartel, and Joaquín Guzmán López, the son of infamous drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, near the Mexican border.
The two were taken into custody last Thursday after arriving at an airport near El Paso, Texas, on a flight. According to Zambada’s attorney, his client was coerced by Guzmán López into traveling against his will.
Zambada has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him and waived his court appearance on Friday. He is scheduled to appear in court again on Thursday.
As the figurehead of the Sinaloa cartel, Zambada has been a thorn in the side of law enforcement for decades. He has been charged in California and New York, with prosecutors accusing him of being the “principal leader of the criminal enterprise responsible for importing enormous quantities of narcotics into the United States.”
Prior to his arrest on July 25, Zambada had managed to evade capture and had never spent time in prison. He has been a wanted man in Mexico since 1998.
Zambada’s relationship with Guzmán is complex and tumultuous. The two co-founded the Sinaloa cartel and ran it together until Guzmán’s capture in 2016. Since then, it is believed that Zambada took control of the organization, leading to a rift with Guzmán’s sons.
Zambada faces a multitude of charges related to drug trafficking, including conspiracy to import narcotics, money laundering, and criminal enterprise. In February, the Eastern District of New York charged him with distributing and conspiring to manufacture fentanyl.
A 2012 filing alleges that two U.S. residents were kidnapped and murdered under the instruction of both Guzmán and Zambada. Their bodies were later discovered in Juarez, Mexico.
The Sinaloa cartel, once run by Guzmán and Zambada, has been responsible for widespread violence and bloodshed. A former cartel member, Margarito “Jay” Flores Jr., who defected to aid U.S. authorities in 2008, described the increasing violence as the demand for drugs grew.
Guzmán, currently serving a life sentence at a federal prison in Colorado, is considered one of the most infamous drug lords in history. He was found guilty on 10 counts by a federal jury in Brooklyn in 2019.
Guzmán’s imprisonment at ADX Florence, a maximum-security prison in Colorado, has been marked by controversy. In January 2023, he wrote a letter to a federal judge, seeking a transfer to Mexico, citing “inhumane” and “discriminatory” conditions at the prison.
