SAN DIEGO (Border Report) — Mexico President Claudia Sheinbaum is questioning why the U.S. government would negotiate with a “terrorist” as it finalizes an agreement with Ovidio “Mouse” Guzmán, a son of Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán, infamous leader of the Sinaloa cartel who is now serving a life sentence in a Colorado prison.
Guzmán had four sons, known as “Chapitos,” including Ovidio, who up until two years ago was running a faction of his father’s criminal organization.
According to the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, Ovidio, at the time, was the biggest exporter of fentanyl into the United States.
He was captured in Culiacán, Mexico, on January 2023, during a joint operation between Mexico and the U.S. forces.
Ovidio was then transported to Mexico City before being extradited to the United States eight months later.
During her daily morning news conference on Thursday, Sheinbaum criticized the U.S. for giving Ovidio’s extended family asylum while negotiating with a terrorist.
“Didn’t the United States government designate cartels and other organizations as foreign terrorist organizations, and doesn’t it have a policy that it doesn’t negotiate with terrorists?” she asked. “What is it doing?”
On Monday, Ovidio Guzmán told a judge in New York that he would sign a plea agreement on July 9.
Originally, prosecutors had charged him with conspiracy to import fentanyl, engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, trafficking fentanyl, possession and conspiracy to possess machine guns and destructive devices, and money laundering.
While the exact terms of the plea deal have not been made public, it is widely believed Ovidio will get a reduced sentence and more lenient prison conditions in exchange for information and evidence on rival cartels.
Two months ago, 17 members of his extended family entered the United States through the San Ysidro Port of Entry after reportedly getting asylum and relocation under the witness protection program.
Sheinbaum questioned why her administration has been left out of negotiations saying Ovidio’s extradition has led to violence in the state of Sinaloa.
“This case in particular, it was an arrest made by the Mexican government in which Mexican soldiers died, at the very least there should be coordination with Mexico’s Attorney General in terms of the negotiations.”
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