EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — Mexican drug kingpin Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, the co-founder of the notorious Sinaloa drug cartel, and one other suspected member of cartel are in U.S. custody and the arrests were made in El Paso on Thursday, July 25, according to a statement released by the U.S. Attorney General’s Office.
Santa Teresa International Jetport. Photos taken by KTSM
Multiple sources have told KTSM that the arrest was made at the Santa Teresa International Jetport, and we were on the scene as law enforcement could be seen at the airport.
Joaquin Guzman Lopez, another alleged member of the cartel, was also arrested, according to the Justice Department. Lopez is reportedly the son of Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman. “El Chapo” Guzman was sentenced to life in prison in the U.S. in 2019.
Zambada founded the Sinaloa Cartel along with now-jailed drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, and he faces a litany of indictments for crimes relating to drug trafficking and organized crime in the United States, according to Reuters.
U.S. federal prosecutors in February charged Zambada with conspiracy to manufacture and distribute fentanyl, which U.S. officials say is the leading cause of death for Americans between the ages of 18 and 45, Reuters said in its report on the arrest.
The U.S. Justice Department issued the following statement from Attorney General Merrick B. Garland on the arrests of alleged leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, Ismael Zambada Garcia (El Mayo) and Joaquin Guzman Lopez:
“The Justice Department has taken into custody two additional alleged leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most violent and powerful drug trafficking organizations in the world. Ismael Zambada Garcia, or ‘El Mayo,’ cofounder of the Cartel, and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, a son of its other cofounder, were arrested today in El Paso, Texas.
“Both men are facing multiple charges in the United States for leading the Cartel’s criminal operations, including its deadly fentanyl manufacturing and trafficking networks.
“El Mayo and Guzman Lopez join a growing list of Sinaloa Cartel leaders and associates who the Justice Department is holding accountable in the United States. That includes the Cartel’s other cofounder, Joaquin Guzman Loera, or ‘El Chapo’; another of El Chapo’s sons and an alleged Cartel leader, Ovidio Guzman Lopez; and the Cartel’s alleged lead sicario, Néstor Isidro Pérez Salas, or ‘El Nini.’
“Fentanyl is the deadliest drug threat our country has ever faced, and the Justice Department will not rest until every single cartel leader, member, and associate responsible for poisoning our communities is held accountable.”
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration had offered a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to his capture, according to the Associated Press.
We have reached out to law enforcement and will update this story as soon as we learn more.
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