Son of Mexico's 'El Chapo' pleads guilty in US drugs case

Ovidio Guzman Lopez, a son of imprisoned former Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, pleaded guilty to four drug trafficking charges. Guzman Lopez was facing a maximum of life in prison.Former Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman's son, Ovidio Guzman Lopez, has pleaded guilty to four drug trafficking and organized crime charges in a US federal court, prosecutors said Friday. Prosecutors accused Guzman Lopez of succeeding his father, who was arrested in 2016 and later extradited to the United States, as one of the leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel in Mexico. Guzman Lopez, also known as "El Raton" (Spanish for "The Mouse"), "pleaded guilty to two counts of drug conspiracy and two counts of knowingly engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise," the US Attorney's Office in the Northern District of Illinois said in a press release. What did prosecutors say? According to the release, prosecutors said Guzman Lopez admitted in his plea deal that he and his three brothers, known as "the Chapitos," took over their father's role at the helm of the Sinaloa Cartel after his arrest. El Chapo was extradited and convicted in 2019. He is currently serving a life sentence in a US federal prison. Guzman Lopez, who pleaded not guilty at his first court appearance following his extradition to the US, has now admitted to coordinating the transport from Mexico into the US of cocaine, cannabis, heroin, and fentanyl, as well as precursor chemicals. As part of the plea deal, he also pleaded guilty to money laundering and weapons charges and agreed to forfeit $80 million (€68.4 million) in property and other assets. Under the agreement, Guzman Lopez, who had faced a potential life sentence, will receive a reduced sentence in exchange for his pledge to "fully and truthfully cooperate," prosecutors said. A sentencing date has not yet been set. "Today's historic guilty plea sends yet another crystal-clear message that this administration is going to shut down and hold accountable transnational criminal organizations and their highest-ranking members and associates,” said US Attorney Andrew S. Boutros. 'Los Chapitos' Guzman Lopez shot to prominence when he was detained by Mexican authorities in October 2019, only for him to be released amid a standoff between security forces and cartel members. He was captured again in January 2023 and extradited to the US. One of his brothers, Joaquin, was arrested in 2024 after landing in the US on a private plane with Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, a co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel along with "El Chapo." Zambada, who had evaded capture for years, claimed he had been kidnapped by Joaquin Guzman Lopez. Both Zambada and Guzman Lopez are awaiting trial in the US. The arrests triggered a power struggle within the cartel that has left more than 1,200 people dead and about 1,400 missing in the northwestern Mexican state of Sinaloa. "El Chapo's" two other sons, Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar and Jesus Alfredo Guzman Salazar, have also been indicted on drug smuggling charges by US authorities but remain at large. Edited by: Louis Oelofse