Mexican security forces on Thursday (January 5th) captured one of the sons of the famous drug baron imprisoned in the United States, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, during an operation in the northwest of the country.
Ovidio Guzman was captured in the city of Culiacan, Defense Secretary Luis Cresencio Sandoval announced. He is accused of directing the “Los Menores faction, linked to the Pacific Cartel”, another name for the Sinaloa Cartel. The suspected drug trafficker, 32, was transferred on an Air Force plane to Mexico City.
Intense exchanges of fire between the army, the national guard and armed men followed his arrest in the capital of the state of Sinaloa, and in particular at the airport where the flights were suspended, noted a journalist for Agence France-Presse.
An airliner was hit by a bullet moments before takeoff, Aeromexico said in a statement, adding that the passengers were then brought to safety.
Several burning vehicles were also emitting thick smoke, causing scenes of panic among the city’s population. Schools have been closed.
Joe Biden’s visit to Mexico
The arrest comes ahead of US President Joe Biden’s arrival in Mexico on Sunday, a day earlier than expected, for a summit with Mexican and Canadian leaders.
The United States offered five million dollars for the capture of Joaquin’s sons “El Chapo” Guzman.
Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard denied that the arrest was a gesture by his government towards Washington and ruled out any extradition “express” of“El Raccoon”.
Ovidio Guzman, alias “El Raccoon” (the mouse), is considered the leader of “Los Menores”a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel founded four decades ago by his father, who is currently serving a life sentence in the United States. He is the best known of the clan of “Los Chapitos” which includes his three other brothers Joaquin Guzman, Ivan Archivaldo and Jesus Alfredo.
The US State Department says he entered the drug business after his brother Edgar was shot dead in 2008 in Culiacan. According to US authorities, “El Raccoon” has its hands on several clandestine laboratories which produce between 1,360 and 2,200 kilograms of methamphetamine per month.
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These different drugs “are sold to other cartel members and distributors in the United States and Canada”according to the State Department.
Fentanyl Trafficking
The Sinaloa Cartel is considered by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to be the main perpetrator of the trafficking of fentanyl, a drug 50 times more potent than heroin, which has caused numerous overdose deaths in the United States.
“Other information indicates that Ovidio ordered the assassination of informants, a drug dealer and a famous singer who refused to sing at his wedding”the report adds.
In October 2019, Ovidio Guzman was briefly arrested, then released on the orders of President Andrés Manuel Lopez Obrador after a violent uprising in Culiacan following his arrest. The president had justified this criticized decision, arguing that a bloodbath had thus been avoided.