Photo credit: Times of India
Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada had been a thorn in the flesh of the US authorities for decades.
However, the Mexican drug cartel leader has been tricked into flying into the US with a son of arrested Joaquim “El Chapo” Guzman. He took a plane to the US, believing it was going elsewhere.
When he got to the El Paso area, Zambada and Joaquim Guzman Lopez were taken into custody by US authorities, according to officials.
On Friday, he was arraigned before the federal court in El Paso. The judge read the charges and informed him of his rights. Zambada, who is being held without bond, pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking charges. His lawyer said his client “did not come to the US voluntarily.”
Zambada has been a key target for the US government for years. As one of the most powerful drug lords in the world, the authorities in the US want to take down leaders of the Sinaloa cartel, of which he is one. The cartel is responsible for trafficking huge sums of drugs across the border. US authorities even offered a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to his capture. His arrest is, therefore, a major loss for the cartel, which is responsible for the majority of drugs, including fentanyl and methamphetamine, killing Americans from coast to coast.
