A local airport worker said the Beechcraft King Air landed on the runway, where federal agents were already waiting.
Photo: REUTERS.
The leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel, Ismael Zambada, nicknamed El Mayo, and his accomplice Joaquin Guzman Lopez, one of the four sons of Mexican drug lord Joaquin Guzman, better known as El Chapo, have been arrested in the United States. According to Reuters, both criminals were arrested after the private plane landed near the city of El Paso, in western Texas.
A local airport worker said the Beechcraft King Air landed on the runway, where federal agents were already waiting. At the same time, the drug traffickers who got off the plane did not resist.
According to The New York Times, since at least 2021, El Mayo has been in contact with the White House and discussing the terms of his possible surrender. But when he boarded El Chapo’s son’s plane, he allegedly didn’t know he was headed to the United States: López lured him there under the pretext of inspecting real estate.
Lopez himself is set to appear in Chicago District Court in the coming days, but it is not known when and where Zambada will be tried. Both face numerous drug trafficking charges, particularly for fentanyl, considered the leading cause of death among US residents between the ages of 18 and 45. US Attorney General Merrick Garland called the opioid “the most lethal drug threat” the United States has ever faced.
The FBI has offered a $15 million reward for Ismael Zambada, who is at large.
Photo: REUTERS.
RICH PAST
El Mayo and El Chapo founded the Sinaloa cartel in 1987, but it still accounts for up to 60% of all drug trafficking in the United States. The White House also considers the alliance between Zambada and Guzmán to be one of the most influential organized crime groups in Mexico. In addition to fentanyl, the barons control the supply of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, marijuana and MDMA.
El Chapo was arrested twice in Mexico but escaped custody on both occasions. In 2017, he was recaptured and extradited to the United States, where he received a life sentence. The FBI has set a $15 million reward for Ismael Zambada, who is at large, and $5 million for Joaquín Guzmán López.
In addition, Joaquín Guzmán López became the second son of El Chapo to be arrested in the past year and a half: in January 2023, the Mexican police, together with the military, captured his brother, Ovidio. The operation was truly large-scale: during the arrest, 7 law enforcement officers were killed and 21 others were injured. In Mexico City, 25 cases of looting were recorded, as well as 250 arson attacks on vehicles used to block streets.
The entire cartel came to Ovidio’s aid, with members firing on planes to prevent their leader from being transported. Two of El Chapo’s four sons, who are also suspected of drug trafficking, remain at large.
FROM FARMER TO FAMILY DRUG BARON-DIABETIC
Ismael Zambada was born on January 1, 1948, to a farming family. The boy continued his parents’ business, but instead of vegetables and fruits, he decided to grow marijuana. Things quickly went uphill, production flourished, and the Sambada gang grew day by day. The business soon expanded, adding heroin and human trafficking to marijuana.
In 2007, El Mayo was added to the list of “America’s Most Wanted,” so in order to disguise himself he had to undergo plastic surgery and completely remodel his face. In 2020, it was revealed that the drug trafficker had diabetes.
Sambada is considered one of the most “family-oriented” businessmen, as all of his relatives were involved in the Sinaloa work. El Mayo is married and has three sons and four daughters, all of whom played important roles in drug trafficking and money laundering. In 2009, his son Vicente Zambada Niebla was arrested by the Mexican military, and another, Ismael Zambada Jr., was wanted on charges of conspiracy to distribute drugs in the United States.
A year later, El Mayo’s brother, Jesús Zambada, and his son were arrested in Mexico City on the same charges. In 2014, Sambada’s son-in-law died unexpectedly at home: although in the post-mortem the cause of death was given as electric shock.
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