The Justice Department on Thursday arrested two alleged leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel — which Attorney General Merrick Garland called “one of the most violent and powerful drug trafficking organizations in the world.”
Ismael Zambada Garcia, also known as “El Mayo,” and Joaquin Guzman Lopez — the son of the cartel’s other jailed cofounder, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman — were arrested in Texas and are facing multiple charges related to manufacturing and trafficking fentanyl, Garland said.
FBI director Christopher Wray noted both men had “eluded law enforcement for decades.”
According to CNN, Guzman Lopez worked with authorities to capture the 76-year-old Zambada by tricking him onto an airplane under the guise of looking at properties in Mexico. But once the plane landed across the border, both men were arrested.
Zambada pleaded not guilty to all seven federal criminal counts he was charged with, according to CNN.
The Mexican government did not participate in the operation, CNN reports, and Mexico’s president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, requested a full report from the US government.
The Washington Post reported that Mexico’s top security minister said US authorities didn’t tell her about the plan until hours after the drug kingpins had already been arrested.
“El Chapo” Guzman, Guzman Lopez’s father, was the cofounder of the Sinaloa Cartel. He escaped from Mexican prison twice. He was extradited to the US in 2017, where he is now serving a life sentence.
During his trial, Guzman argued Zambada was the real boss behind the cartel.
Frank Perez, a lawyer for Zambada, told The Los Angeles Times that he did not surrender voluntarily and was brought to the US against his will.
Perez did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment.
