Mexican Drug Lords Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada and ‘El Chapo’ Son Arrested in El Paso

EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — Mexican drug lord Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada and the son of notorious drug dealer “El Chapo” Guzman were arrested in El Paso.

Department of Justice Attorney General Merrick B. Garland announced that Sinaloa Cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia, 76, and Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman Loera’s son, Joaquin Guzman Lopez, 35, were arrested in El Paso and are in U.S. custody.

According to a report by CNN, both men were lured to the U.S. under false pretenses, with at least one of them thinking they were flying to view properties in Mexico they intended to buy.

A Department of Homeland Security (HSI) investigation revealed that both men surrendered voluntarily.

Authorities say El Mayo and Guzman Lopez join a growing list of Sinaloa Cartel leaders and associates being held accountable by the U.S. Department of Justice.

Also on the list reportedly are “El Chapo,” El Chapo’s other son and alleged cartel leader, Ovidio Guzman Lopez, and alleged cartel leader Nestor Isidro Perez Salas, known as “El Nini.”

Law enforcement has offered a $15 million reward for information leading to Zambada’s arrest and up to $5 million for Guzman Lopez.

Sources said both men were detained at the Doña Ana County International Jetport in Santa Teresa, right next to the War Eagles Air Museum.

KFOX14/CBS4 cameras were at El Paso International Airport Thursday evening when a private jet took off in connection with the arrests, HSI confirmed.

HSI released the following statement regarding the arrests:

(On Thursday) Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada-Garcia and Joaquin Guzman Lopez were arrested by U.S. authorities and are currently in custody in El Paso, Texas.

These arrests are the culmination of a joint Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) and FBI investigation into the Sinaloa Cartel. In December 2022, HSI and the FBI secured indictments against several members of the Sinaloa Cartel, including Joaquin Guzman Lopez, son of “El Chapo” Guzman. Ismael Zambada-Gacia was a partner and co-leader of the Sinaloa Cartel with “El Chapo” and a close confidante of his sons. Zambada-Garcia has multiple pending indictments in the United States.

Thursday’s collaborative effort with law enforcement is another example of HSI’s commitment to combating the illegal trafficking of deadly drugs, such as fentanyl, into the United States.

HSI thanks all law enforcement agencies that assisted in the arrest of these two individuals. These are ongoing investigations and as such limited information will be available.

Drug Enforcement Administration Administrator Anne Milgram issued the following statement:

The arrest of Ismael Zambada Garcia, better known as “El Mayo,” one of the alleged founders and leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, strikes at the heart of the cartel that is responsible for the majority of drug, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, killing Americans from coast to coast. El Mayo is one of the DEA’s most wanted fugitives and is in custody today and will soon face trial in the U.S. Joaquin Guzman Lopez, another alleged leader of the Sinaloa Cartel and son of “El Chapo,” was also arrested today — his arrest is another huge blow to the Sinaloa Cartel. In 2017, he and his brothers, the Chapitos, allegedly took control of the Sinaloa Cartel after El Chapo was extradited to the United States. The DEA will continue to seek justice for every American life lost and work tirelessly to prevent unnecessary deaths and prosecute those responsible.

Statement by Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas:

The Sinaloa Cartel pioneered the production of fentanyl and has been smuggling it into our country for years, killing hundreds of thousands of Americans and devastating countless communities. The Biden-Harris Administration has taken a relentless, unprecedented, and comprehensive approach to combating the fentanyl scourge. (On Thursday) two alleged top leaders of the Cartel—Ismael Zambada Garcia (“El Mayo”) and Joaquin Guzman Lopez—are in U.S. custody and will be held accountable. I commend the dedicated, courageous agents and officers of Homeland Security Investigations and the FBI whose decades of work, along with others in the law enforcement community, at great personal sacrifice, have disrupted and dismantled the Cartel’s operations around the world.

Statement by FBI Director Christopher Wray:

(Thursday) The FBI and DEA have arrested two alleged cartel leaders who have eluded law enforcement for decades. Ismael Mario “El Mayo” Zambada García and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, El Chapo’s son, will now face justice in the United States, said FBI Director Chris Wray. “Garcia and Guzman allegedly oversaw the smuggling of tens of thousands of pounds of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and fentanyl into the United States, as well as the violence associated with it. These arrests are an example of the FBI’s and our partners’ commitment to dismantling violent transnational criminal organizations like the Sinaloa Cartel.

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KFOX14/CBS4 spoke with former U.S. Marshal Robert Almonte, who said both individuals had ties to the border,

There is no doubt that the Sinaloa cartel is present in the El Paso area and is involved in drug smuggling as well as human trafficking, so this is a really big deal. I am very excited and happy to hear about this.

Almonte also explained that he believes the legal process for Zambada and Guzman Lopez will be different than that for El Chapo.

“The son of ‘El Mayo’ Zambada and ‘Chapo’ Guzman were arrested here in the United States, so we don’t have to worry about the Mexican government extraditing them,” Almonte said.

Almonte added that in addition to drug trafficking charges, he expects the two men to face human trafficking, kidnapping and corruption charges.

Who is Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada?

According to the U.S. Department of State:

Ismael Mario Zambada Garcia is the longtime leader of the Zambada Garcia faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. Zambada Garcia is unique in that he has spent his entire adult life as a major international drug trafficker, yet has never spent a day in prison. Following the arrest, extradition, conviction, and sentencing of Sinaloa Cartel faction leader Joaquin Guzman-Loera, also known as Chapo Guzman, Zambada Garcia is the undisputed senior leader of the Sinaloa Cartel.

Zambada Garcia has been charged in a series of indictments over the years:

January 28, 2003, District of Columbia.
August 20, 2009 – Northern District of Illinois.
April 11, 2012 – Western District of Texas.
July 25, 2014 – Southern District of California.
May 11, 2016 – Eastern District of New York.

All of the indictments involve serious violations of U.S. drug laws.

An indictment in the Northern District of Illinois unsealed in 2009 also charged Zambada’s son, Vicente Zambada Niebla. Zambada Niebla was arrested by Mexican authorities that same year and extradited back to the United States to stand trial in Chicago in 2013. Zambada Niebla eventually pleaded guilty and agreed to cooperate, testifying against Joaquín Guzman Loera at his trial in Brooklyn, New York, in January 2019. He was sentenced to 15 years in prison in May 2019. During testimony in New York, Zambada Niebla recounted his father, Zambada Garcia, and Chapo Guzman shipping tons of drugs. He also testified that his father’s bribe budget was often as much as $1 million a month, with bribes going to numerous high-ranking Mexican public officials.

Who is Joaquin Guzman Lopez?

According to the Department of Homeland Security:

The Guzman Lopez brothers began their careers in drug trafficking early, inheriting relationships from their deceased brother, Edgar Guzman Lopez. After Edgar’s death, Ovidio and Joaquin inherited a significant portion of the drug revenues and began investing large amounts of money in buying marijuana in Mexico and cocaine in Colombia. They also began buying large amounts of ephedrine from Argentina and organized the smuggling of the product into Mexico as they began experimenting with methamphetamine production.

The Guzman Lopez brothers currently operate approximately eleven methamphetamine labs in Sinaloa state, producing an estimated 3,000 to 5,000 pounds of methamphetamine per month. The methamphetamine is sold wholesale to other Sinaloa members and to distributors based in the U.S. and Canada. Other information indicates that Ovidio Guzman Lopez ordered the murders of informants, a drug dealer, and a popular Mexican singer who refused to sing at his wedding.

On April 2, 2018, both Guzman Lopez brothers were indicted by a federal grand jury in the District of Columbia on one count each of Sections 959(a), 960, and 963 of the 21st United States Code (conspiracy to distribute more than 5 kilograms of cocaine, 500 grams of methamphetamine, and 1,000 kilograms of marijuana).

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