NEWS
Son of ‘El Chapo’ Pleads Not Guilty to Drug Trafficking, Money Laundering Charges in U.S. Court
Courtesy of @derekmaltz_sr/X
The son of Sinaloa cartel leader Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán, Ovidio Guzmán López, pleaded not guilty on Monday to U.S. charges including drug trafficking and money laundering, after being extradited from Mexico.
U.S. prosecutors announced indictments against Guzmán López, 33, and his brothers, together known as the “Chapitos,” earlier this year. Guzmán López was extradited from Mexico on Friday to face the charges, and appeared in court in Chicago on Monday.
According to the Department of Justice, the Sinaloa cartel is largely responsible for the manufacturing and importing of fentanyl for distribution in the U.S. According to prosecutors, between 2019 and 2021, fatal overdoses increased by approximately 94%, with an estimated 196 Americans dying each day from fentanyl.
Since the arrest of El Chapo in 2016 and his extradition to the U.S. in 2017, the Chapitos “allegedly assumed their father’s former role as leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, along with Zambada Garcia and Damaso Lopez Nunez, aka Licenciado,” the Justice Department said. After taking over, the brothers allegedly steered the cartel toward more synthetic drugs, including methamphetamines and fentanyl.
“The Chapitos subsequently amassed greater control over the Sinaloa Cartel by allegedly threatening and causing violence against Lopez Nunez, his family, and his associates and, as a result, became principal leaders and drug traffickers within the Sinaloa Cartel,” the Justice Department said.
The Chapitos allegedly used “cargo aircraft, private aircraft, submarines and other submersible and semi-submersible vessels, container ships, supply vessels, go-fast boats, fishing vessels, buses, rail cars, tractor trailers, automobiles, and private and commercial interstate and foreign carriers” to traffic drugs and precursor chemicals into the U.S.
Charges were filed in the Southern District of New York, the District of Columbia, and the Northern District of Illinois.
In the Illinois case, Guzmán López is charged with operating a drug trafficking Continuing Criminal Enterprise between May 2008 and October 2021, along with additional drug, money laundering and firearms charges.
Guzmán López, nicknamed “The Mouse,” before U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman in shackles, and pleaded not guilty. His next court appearance was scheduled for Nov. 17.
TMX contributed to this article.
