The son of jailed Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera, Joaquín Guzmán López, and cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García were arrested in El Paso, Texas. They face charges related to the Sinaloa Cartel’s fentanyl manufacturing and trafficking operations. “El Chapo” is already serving a life sentence in the U.S.
The Sinaloa and Jalisco cartels are major contributors to the synthetic drug crisis in the U.S., particularly in the distribution of fentanyl and methamphetamine. Efforts are being made by the Justice Department to hold cartel leaders accountable for the harm caused by these drugs.
Other sons of “El Chapo” have also been indicted for drug-related charges, and some have been arrested and extradited to the U.S. The four sons, known as the “Chapitos,” have taken over their father’s drug trafficking network within the Sinaloa Cartel.
Zambada García, known as “El Mayo,” co-founded the cartel and has been in conflict with the “Chapitos” in recent years. He has been charged in the U.S. for drug-related offenses, including fentanyl trafficking.
The DEA reports that both the Sinaloa and Jalisco cartels are involved in the production and distribution of fentanyl, despite claims by the “Chapitos” to cease trafficking the drug. The availability and quantity of fentanyl seized at the border have not decreased, indicating that the supply remains strong.
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