Two of the alleged leaders of one of the most violent and powerful criminal organisations in the world were arrested after being lured to the United States in an elaborate sting operation.
Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Gracia, the co-founder of the Mexican Sinaloa cartel and the son of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzman Lopez were arrested after being tricked into flying to the US instead of to another airport in Mexico.
The suspects landed in a private jet at the airport in El Paso, Texas on Thursday where they were arrested.
Details of how the alleged drug lords were captured are unclear but Fox News reported Mr Guzman Lopez convinced Mr Zambada Gracia to board the jet which he believed was heading south in Mexico but instead, it flew north and landed in the United States.
When the plane touched down, Mr Guzman Lopez surrendered and “El Mayo” was detained.
The New York Times quoted US officials saying the son of El Chapo lured Mr Zambada Gracia to El Paso “under false pretences”.
It is not clear if or why he may have betrayed his fellow cartel boss. The US is known to use plea deals to encourage members to cooperate with them.
Merrick Garland, the US attorney general said in a statement: “The Justice Department has taken into custody two additional alleged leaders of the Sinaloa cartel, one of the most violent and powerful drug trafficking organisations in the world.”
The US Drug Enforcement Administration had offered a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to Mr Zambada Gracia’s capture.
Mr Garland said both men were facing multiple charges in the US for “leading the cartel’s criminal operations, including its deadly fentanyl manufacturing and trafficking networks”.
He added that the two men joined “a growing list of Sinaloa cartel leaders and associates who the Justice Department is holding accountable”.
“Fentanyl is the deadliest drug threat our country has ever faced, and the Justice Department will not rest until every single cartel leader, member, and associate responsible for poisoning our communities is held accountable,” he said.
The two men were said to be among the most consequential drug traffickers in Mexico and oversaw operations that sent drugs to the US, Europe and other parts of the world.
It is understood that Mr Zambada Gracia has never been imprisoned, unlike his top ally, Joaquin Guzman Loera, known as “El Chapo”.
After his father was extradited to the US, it appeared that Mr Guzman Lopez was promoted to head the cartel.
In 2019, El Chapo was sentenced to life in prison by a court in New York.
After El Chapo’s capture, several of his sons, who were known as “Chapitos” or “The Little Chapos” took control of the crime organisation, US authorities said.
One son, Ovidio Guzman Lopez, was extradited to the United States last year to face drug charges.
‘Killing Americans coast to coast’
Anne Milgram, the US Drugs Enforcement Administration chief, said in a statement that the arrest of Mr Zambada Gracia “strikes at the cartel that is responsible for the majority of drugs, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, killing Americans from coast to coast.”
She said the capture of El Chapo’s son strikes “another enormous blow to the Sinaloa Cartel”.
In 2012, a federal grand jury in Texas indicted the 76-year-old Mr Zambada Gracia on charges of murder and conspiracy connected with drug trafficking, money laundering and organised crime.
Breon Peace, the US attorney for the eastern district of New York, said: “As alleged, Zambada Gracia is charged with numerous drug offences, now including the manufacture and distribution of fentanyl, a deadly drug that was largely unheard of when he founded the Sinaloa Cartel more than three decades ago and today is responsible for immeasurable harm.”
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