Relatives of Ovidio Guzmán, a son of Sinaloa cartel co-founder Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, have gone to the United States as part of his negotiations with US authorities, according to Mexico’s security minister.
Ovidio Guzmán, known as “El Ratón” (The Mouse), pleaded not guilty in a US district court in Chicago last year but is believed to be seeking a plea deal.
Seventeen of his relatives crossed over to the United States “due to this negotiation”, Mexico’s security minister, Omar García Harfuch, said in an interview with Radio Formula on Tuesday.
The family members were not wanted by Mexican authorities, he added, urging the US Department of Justice to share information with Mexico about the case. The department declined to comment.
Ovidio Guzmán was extradited to the United States in 2023 to face narcotics charges, joining his father, one of the world’s most infamous drug traffickers, who is serving a life sentence in a US prison.
Judicial sources told AFP in October that Ovidio Guzmán was negotiating a plea deal with prosecutors to avoid trial.
A court hearing in the case was due to be held on 12 May, but it was canceled and rescheduled for 9 July.
According to court documents, a “change of plea agreement” is scheduled to take place on that day before a judge in Illinois.
The United States accuses El Chapo’s sons – known as the Chapitos – of taking over the Sinaloa cartel after the capture of their father.
The cartel is one of six Mexican drug trafficking groups designated terrorist organizations by Donald Trump.
Ovidio Guzmán is accused of conspiring to ship cocaine, fentanyl, heroin, methamphetamine and marijuana into the United States.
Another son, Joaquín Guzmán López, was arrested after arriving in the United States last July in a private plane with cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, who claimed he had been kidnapped.
The arrests sparked cartel infighting that has left more than 1,200 people dead and 1,400 missing in Sinaloa state, located in north-western Mexico.
Source: theguardian.com
