The U.S. Ambassador to Mexico, Ken Salazar, has acknowledged that the notorious drug lord Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia was brought to the United States against his will when he arrived in Texas in July on a flight with the equally infamous drug lord Joaquin Guzman Lopez, son of the notorious cartel kingpin “El Chapo.” Zambada Garcia’s attorney had previously claimed that El Mayo, 76, the longtime leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel, was kidnapped from Mexico by Guzman Lopez and six men in military uniforms, who flew him to the U.S. against his will.
Ambassador Salazar confirmed at a press conference that “the evidence we saw… shows that they brought El Mayo Zambada against his will.” Salazar added that the operation was carried out between rival cartels, with one turning against the other. However, Guzman Lopez’s attorney has denied that a kidnapping took place, describing it as a voluntary surrender following prolonged negotiations.
Zambada Garcia’s arrest has raised concerns about a new wave of violence and instability in Mexico, as well as potential deterioration of relations with the United States. The ambassador’s statement came just hours after Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador expressed that “there is no cooperation” from Washington regarding the clarification of the circumstances surrounding the arrests of Zambada Garcia and Guzman Lopez. “They have not provided us with sufficient information,” said Lopez Obrador at a press conference on Friday.
Salazar emphasized that no U.S. personnel, resources, or aircraft were involved in the flight during which Guzman Lopez launched his surrender, stating that U.S. authorities were “surprised” when the elder Zambada Garcia also appeared at an airport outside El Paso, Texas, on July 25. Zambada Garcia’s faction of the Sinaloa cartel had been engaged in bloody internal battles with the sons of El Chapo, including Guzman Lopez, who is a half-brother to the leaders of that faction.
Guzman Lopez, 38, had apparently been in lengthy negotiations with U.S. authorities about the possibility of surrendering and has pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking and other charges in a federal court in Chicago. U.S. authorities indicated they had virtually no preparation when Guzman Lopez’s plane landed near El Paso about a month ago. This suggests that Guzman Lopez intended to surrender and took Zambada Garcia with him to secure more favorable treatment from U.S. authorities, although his motives remain unclear.
Zambada Garcia was sentenced to life in prison by a U.S. court in 2019. He is believed to be more involved in the day-to-day operations of the Sinaloa cartel than his former, more famous boss El Chapo. Zambada Garcia has been charged in several U.S. cases, including in New York and California, and prosecutors have also filed a new indictment against him in New York in February.
In light of fears of escalating violence among drug gangs, President Lopez Obrador made the unusual decision to issue a public appeal to drug cartels not to fight one another.