Following the unexpected arrests of two alleged Mexican drug lords in Texas, three law enforcement officials suggest one might have deceived the other into boarding a plane to the U.S.
Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that the son of imprisoned Sinaloa Cartel boss JoaquÃn “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera and a cartel co-founder who led it for three decades were arrested on Thursday in El Paso.
JoaquÃn Guzmán López and Sinaloa Cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada GarcÃa have both been indicted in the U.S. They face multiple charges related to the cartel's activities, including involvement in its deadly fentanyl manufacturing and trafficking networks, Garland said.
Authorities are investigating whether Guzmán López tricked Zambada into getting on the U.S.-bound plane, which first landed in New Mexico before arriving in El Paso, where the arrests were made. Guzmán was flown to Chicago, while Zambada remained in El Paso for a federal court appearance on Friday.
One theory is that Guzmán decided to surrender and thought he would get better treatment if he brought another major cartel figure. The arrests were the result of a joint effort by Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI targeting the cartel.
“El Chapo” was arrested in Mexico, extradited to the U.S., and is serving a life-plus-30-year sentence handed down in New York in 2019.
The Sinaloa and Jalisco cartels are central to the U.S. synthetic drug crisis, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, according to the DEA’s 2024 National Drug Threat Assessment. Garland stated that the Justice Department is committed to holding every cartel leader and associate accountable.
Ovidio Guzmán López, another son of “El Chapo” and alleged cartel leader, was arrested in Mexico in January 2023 and extradited to the U.S. to face drug and money laundering charges. He pleaded not guilty in September.
A federal grand jury indicted JoaquÃn and Ovidio Guzmán López in 2018 for conspiracy to distribute cocaine, methamphetamine, and marijuana into the U.S. They, along with two other sons of "El Chapo," were indicted again last year. Iván Guzmán Salazar and Alfredo Guzmán Salazar remain at large. The four sons, known as the “Chapitos,” took over their father’s drug trafficking networks and cartel faction.
The Sinaloa Cartel consists of four criminal organizations, including “Los Chapitos,” led by the four sons. They pushed to make fentanyl a larger part of the cartel’s business since at least 2012.
Zambada GarcÃa, “El Mayo,” co-founded the cartel and led it for three decades, controlling one of its four factions. Recently, he has been involved in an internal battle with the “Chapitos.”
Zambada GarcÃa, charged in the U.S., faces accusations of conspiracy to distribute fentanyl. DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said his arrest targets the cartel responsible for the majority of drugs killing Americans.
In 2023, an estimated 107,543 drug overdose deaths occurred in the U.S., with 74,702 from synthetic opioids like fentanyl and 36,251 from psychostimulants like methamphetamine, according to the CDC. The Sinaloa and Jalisco cartels produce fentanyl in Mexican labs and ship it to the U.S.
Both cartels allegedly ordered subordinates to stop trafficking fentanyl last year, but the DEA considers this a public relations stunt. Fentanyl seizures at the border in 2023 remained high, with no indication of reduced supply.