Washington, DC [US], September 16 : Mexican drug lord Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman's son Ovidio Guzman Lopez has been extraditied to the United States, according to the US Department of Justice.
Garland praised the United States' and Mexican law enforcement and military service members for their fight against the cartels.
"The fight against the cartels has involved incredible courage by United States law enforcement and Mexican law enforcement and military servicemembers, many of whom have given their lives in the pursuit of justice," he said.
He further said, "I am grateful to them and to the Department’s prosecutors for their work and their sacrifice. I am also grateful to our Mexican government counterparts for this extradition. The Justice Department will continue to hold accountable those responsible for fueling the opioid epidemic that has devastated too many communities across the country."
Northern District of Illinois Assistant US Attorney Joseph D Fitzpatrick said Guzman was flown to Chicago and landed Friday afternoon, CNN reported.
Guzman was arrested by Mexican authorities in January this year following a dramatic operation in the northern state of Sinaloa that led to 29 deaths and has been in custody since then.
Previously, Guzman was arrested in October 2019, CNN reported. However, he was released after the orders of Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador to avoid bloodshed and subsequently went into hiding until his arrest in 2023.
His extradition comes after the release of El Chapo's wife Emma Coronel Aispuro from a US prison on Wednesday. She had served nearly two years for drug trafficking and money laundering charges, according to CNN report.
The US State Department believes that Guzman and his brother, Joaquin Guzman-Lopez, “inherited a great deal of the narcotics proceeds” after the death of another brother, Edgar Guzman-Lopez.
In 2015, Guzman’s father, “El Chapo,” escaped from Altiplano prison through a tunnel that featured a motorcycle on tracks, CNN reported. He was later captured and convicted in the US on 10 counts, including engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, drug trafficking and firearms charges. He was sentenced to life in prison for 30 plus years and ordered to pay a fine of USD 12.6 billion.
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