One of the sons of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, a well-known and powerful Mexican drug cartel leader, pleaded guilty to drug trafficking crimes Friday, July 11, in a United States court, the Associated Press reported.
Ovidio Guzmán López admitted that he helped manage the production and smuggling of large amounts of illegal drugs — specifically cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, marijuana and fentanyl — into the United States.
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The elder Guzmán is currently serving time in a Colorado supermax prison after being convicted of multiple felonies related to cartel crimes in 2019.
Additional charges and unclear terms
As part of his plea deal, Guzmán López also pleaded guilty to money laundering and firearms charges. However, according to the AP, terms of the agreement remain unclear, including sentencing recommendations.
These drugs, especially fentanyl, have been a major cause of drug overdoses in the U.S.
Federal response to the fentanyl crisis
“Our nation’s fentanyl crisis has devastated individuals and families in Northern Illinois and throughout the country,” Acting U.S. Attorney Morris Pasqual said in a February statement after Guzmán López was indicted. “Our office will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to disrupt the production and trafficking of fentanyl and other dangerous narcotics before they can reach more victims.”
Cartel leadership and smuggling operations
Prosecutors argued that Ovidio Guzmán López and his brother Joaquín Guzmán López, both sons of El Chapo, were leaders of a part of the Sinaloa cartel and smuggled significant amounts of the drugs into the country.
Mexican President reacts to U.S. agreement
Jeffrey Lichtman, attorney for Ovidio Guzmán López, said Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum complained about not being involved in the process and part of the negotiations.
“She felt that the American government should not even have negotiated an agreement with Ovidio Guzmán because she claims that he was a terrorist and that America doesn’t negotiate with terrorists,” Lichtman told reporters outside the courtroom Friday. “In addition, she lastly claimed that she was unhappy that the Mexican government was not informed of various members of the Guzmán family. None of them were under suspicion of any wrongdoing inside Mexico, the fact that they came to America.”
Brother also indicted
A grand jury has also indicted Joaquín Guzmán López, whom Lichtman is defending in court as well. Lichtman said his case is currently in the discovery phase.
