I n a significant development, Mexican drug kingpin Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, son of the infamous Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, were arrested on Thursday in El Paso, Texas. This major coup for U.S. authorities may lead to significant changes in the Mexican criminal landscape.
El Mayo Zambada, a co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, has been one of Mexico's most influential traffickers. His partner, El Chapo, was extradited to the United States in 2017 and is currently serving a life sentence in a maximum-security prison.
Zambada and Guzman Lopez face multiple charges in the U.S. for their involvement in drug trafficking operations, particularly fentanyl, which has become the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18 to 45. The two were detained after landing in a private plane in the El Paso area, according to U.S. officials.
Joaquin Guzman Lopez, one of El Chapo's four sons known as Los Chapitos, has followed in his father's footsteps within the Sinaloa Cartel. His brother, Ovidio Guzman, was arrested last year and extradited to the United States. The Sinaloa Cartel is a primary target for U.S. authorities, being the largest supplier of fentanyl to the United States.
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland stated that Zambada and Guzman Lopez were responsible for heading the cartel’s criminal operations, including its fentanyl manufacturing and trafficking networks. The arrests were part of a joint operation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI).
A worker at the Santa Teresa airport near El Paso witnessed the arrest, describing it as a calm and arranged process. The U.S. authorities had a $15 million reward for Zambada's capture, while Guzman Lopez had a $5 million bounty.
The Sinaloa cartel operates in more than 50 countries and is one of Mexico's most powerful organized crime groups. Zambada and El Chapo's sons belong to different generations of traffickers, with contrasting styles. Zambada is known as an "old-school" narco, operating in the shadows, while El Chapo's sons have a reputation for being flashy and more violent.
Their arrests could lead to instability or even violence in Sinaloa, as previous arrests of cartel leaders have often triggered infighting and power vacuums. Over the past year, U.S. authorities have issued new indictments against Zambada and Guzman's sons, focusing on fentanyl smuggling and the flow of precursor chemicals to their illicit labs.
The Justice Department remains committed to holding all cartel leaders, members, and associates accountable for their roles in the fentanyl crisis that has devastated communities across the United States.
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