By Drazen Jorgic
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) -Mexican drug kingpin Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and the son of his ex-partner, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, have been arrested on Thursday in El Paso, Texas, in a serious coup for U.S. authorities which will additionally reshape the Mexican prison panorama.
Zambada is without doubt one of the most consequential traffickers in Mexico’s historical past and co-founded the Sinaloa Cartel with El Chapo, who was extradited to the US in 2017 and is serving a life sentence in a most safety jail.
Each Zambada and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, the son of El Chapo, face a number of expenses within the U.S. for funneling enormous portions of medicine to U.S. streets, together with fentanyl, which has surged to turn out to be the main reason behind dying for Individuals between the ages of 18 and 45.
Zambada, who’s believed to be in his 70s, and Guzman Lopez, who’s in his 30s, have been detained after touchdown in a non-public aircraft within the El Paso space, two U.S. officers informed Reuters.
Guzman Lopez is one among 4 sons of El Chapo — referred to as Los Chapitos, or Little Chapos — who inherited their father’s faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. His brother, Ovidio Guzman, was arrested final yr and extradited to the US.
In recent times, the Sinaloa Cartel has turn out to be the most important goal for U.S. authorities, who’ve accused the crime syndicate of being the most important provider of fentanyl to the US.
Zambada and Guzman Lopez face a number of expenses within the U.S. “for heading the Cartel’s prison operations, together with its lethal fentanyl manufacturing and trafficking networks,” U.S. Legal professional Basic Merrick Garland mentioned in an announcement.
The arrest of Guzman Lopez was first reported by Reuters, forward of the Justice Division assertion the place it was confirmed they have been detained in El Paso.
One employee on the Santa Teresa airport, close to El Paso, on Thursday afternoon informed Reuters that he noticed a Beechcraft King Air land on the runway, the place federal brokers have been already ready.
“Two people obtained off the aircraft… and have been calmly taken into custody,” mentioned the person, who declined to share his title out of concern for his security.
“It appeared like a fairly calm, organized factor,” he added.
The U.S. authorities had a $15 million reward for Zambada’s seize, whereas Guzman Lopez had a $5 million bounty on his head.
The Sinaloa cartel traffics medication to greater than 50 international locations across the globe and is one among two strongest organized crime teams in Mexico, in keeping with U.S. authorities.
Zambada and El Chapo’s sons belong to 2 totally different generations of traffickers, with differing kinds.
Zambada is understood for being an “old-school” narco, avoiding the limelight and working within the shadows. El Chapo’s sons, in contrast, have a status for being flashy narcos who courted consideration as they ascended the ranks of the cartel.
El Chapo’s sons are additionally identified to be extra violent and hot-headed than Zambada, who had a status as a shrewd operator.
Zambada and El Chapo’s sons have had a fractious relationship since their father was extradited in 2017, and the arrests of Zambada and Guzman Lopez could set off instability and even violence of their heartlands within the northern state of Sinaloa.
Earlier arrests of necessary cartel leaders has triggered violence as energy vacuums open, resulting in important infighting inside the organizations and between them and their rivals.
“This chance definitely looms very massive,” mentioned Vanda (NASDAQ:) Felbab-Brown, a researcher at Washington’s Brookings Establishment who carefully displays Mexican safety.
Their arrests have been a part of a joint operation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Homeland Safety Investigations (HSI) businesses, HSI mentioned in an announcement.
U.S. authorities have over the previous yr launched recent indictments in opposition to Zambada and Guzman’s sons on new expenses in the US that target fentanyl smuggling, in addition to the circulate of precursor chemical substances to the illicit labs operated by their crime syndicate.
Over a long time, the cartel has arrange refined provide chains to maneuver medication throughout the globe and to supply closely regulated chemical substances to their house base in Sinaloa.
Earlier within the day on Thursday, Reuters printed an investigation that exposed how fentanyl precursor chemical substances are astonishingly simple and low-cost to purchase on-line from Chinese language sellers that ship the substances door-to-door in North America.
“Fentanyl is the deadliest drug menace our nation has ever confronted, and the Justice Division is not going to relaxation till each single cartel chief, member, and affiliate liable for poisoning our communities is held accountable,” Garland added.
