In a significant blow to the Mexican criminal underworld, Mexican drug kingpin Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Lopez, the son of Zambada’s former partner, were arrested on Thursday in El Paso, Texas. This high-profile capture represents a major achievement for U.S. authorities and could potentially alter the dynamics of the Mexican drug trade.
Zambada, a pivotal figure in Mexico’s drug trafficking history and co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel with Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, was apprehended alongside Guzman Lopez, who is one of El Chapo’s four sons known as Los Chapitos. El Chapo, who was extradited to the U.S. in 2017, is currently serving a life sentence in a maximum-security prison. Both Zambada and Guzman Lopez face multiple U.S. charges related to their roles in trafficking massive quantities of drugs, including fentanyl, which has become the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18 to 45.
The arrests occurred after Zambada and Guzman Lopez landed in a private plane at the Santa Teresa airport near El Paso. According to a witness, federal agents were prepared and calmly took the two individuals into custody. The U.S. had placed a $15 million bounty on Zambada’s head and a $5 million reward for Guzman Lopez.
The Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most formidable drug trafficking organizations, is now under heightened scrutiny from U.S. authorities, who accuse it of being the largest supplier of fentanyl in the U.S. The cartel’s internal dynamics and its relationship with El Chapo’s sons are expected to be impacted by these arrests, possibly leading to increased violence and instability in the cartel’s stronghold in Sinaloa.
These arrests are part of a broader joint operation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and Homeland Security Investigations (HSI). U.S. authorities have recently intensified their efforts against the Sinaloa Cartel, focusing on fentanyl smuggling and the illegal chemical supply chains essential to its operations.
“This is a critical step in our fight against the deadly fentanyl crisis,” said U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland. “The Justice Department will continue to hold accountable every individual involved in poisoning our communities.”
