Mexico extradited Ovidio Guzman, one of the sons of drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, to the United States on Friday, American authorities said.
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“Today, U.S. and Mexican law enforcement agencies successfully transferred to the U.S. Department of Justice Ovidio Guzman Lopez, one of “El Chapo’s” sons who has been indicted on drug trafficking, money laundering and money and other violent crimes,” the US Department of Homeland Security said in a statement.
“The extradition of Lopez demonstrates the importance of cooperation between the American and Mexican governments to curb drug trafficking,” added the department, thanking Mexico for this transfer.
A few days before a visit by Joe Biden last January, Mexican authorities captured Ovidio Guzman, 32, in an operation that left at least 29 people dead and sparked intense exchanges of gunfire between police forces and armed men in Culiacan, a city of 800,000 inhabitants in northwestern Mexico.
Known as “El Raton,” Ovidio Guzman is one of the sons of the Sinaloa Cartel founder, who is currently serving a life sentence in the United States. American authorities consider him to be an important member of the cartel with his brother, Joaquin Guzman Lopez.
“El Chapo” Guzman was considered the most powerful drug trafficker in the world until his arrest in 2016 and extradition to the United States in 2017.
Sentenced in July 2019 to life in prison after a high-security trial in New York, he is serving his sentence in a high-security prison in Colorado.