U.S. authorities affirm that the son of infamous drug cartel figure "El Chapo" will avoid a death sentence if found guilty.
U.S. declines death penalty for Joaquin Guzman Lopez, son of notorious Mexican drug lord "El Chapo"
Federal prosecutors in Chicago will not seek the death penalty against Joaquin Guzman Lopez, the son of notorious drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, if he is found guilty of multiple federal charges. The decision not to seek capital punishment was announced in a one-sentence notice filed by U.S. Attorney Andrew Boutros on Friday.
Joaquin Guzman Lopez's attorney, Jeffrey Lichtman, confirmed the decision and welcomed it as "the correct one." Lichtman stated that he and his client were looking forward to resolving the charges against him.
The younger Guzman's father is a former leader of the Sinaloa cartel, known for smuggling massive amounts of cocaine and other drugs into the United States over 25 years. Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman was convicted on multiple conspiracy counts in 2019 and sentenced to life in a U.S. prison.
Prosecutors allege that Joaquin Guzman Lopez and his brother, Ovidio Guzman Lopez, ran a faction of the cartel known as the "Chapitos," or little Chapos, which has been identified as a significant supplier of fentanyl to the U.S. The brothers are among dozens of members of the Sinaloa cartel who were indicted in a sweeping 2023 federal indictment.
The indictment alleged that the Chapitos and their associates used brutal methods to torture their rivals, including such tactics as corkscrews, electrocution, and hot chiles. Some victims were reportedly "fed dead or alive to tigers."
Federal authorities arrested Joaquin Guzman Lopez and Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, another longtime Sinaloa leader, in Texas in July 2023. Guzman Lopez has been indicted on eight counts, including money laundering, drug dealing, and conspiracy to distribute drugs. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
Zambada has accused Joaquin Guzman Lopez of kidnapping him and bringing him to the U.S. Zambada is facing multiple counts in federal court in New York, including international distribution of cocaine, money laundering, and manufacturing drugs for illegal importation. He too has pleaded not guilty.
Ovidio Guzman Lopez was arrested in Mexico in 2023 and extradited to the United States. He is charged in federal court in Chicago with money laundering, drug, and firearm offenses. He has pleaded not guilty, and he is scheduled to appear in court on July 9 to change his plea as part of a deal with prosecutors.
Mexico's security chief confirmed earlier this month that 17 family members of the cartel leaders, including Griselda Lopez Perez, El Chapo's ex-wife, and her daughter, crossed into the U.S. last week as part of a deal between a son of the former head of the Sinaloa Cartel and the Trump administration. The specific details of this agreement have not been disclosed.
In: Drug Cartels, El Chapo, Cartel
The federal prosecutors' decision not to seek capital punishment for Joaquin Guzman Lopez, despite multiple charges, could be seen as a significant development in the realm of crime-and-justice, following the U.S. Attorney's announcement. Meanwhile, the general-news landscape remains abuzz with updates on the Sinaloa cartel, including allegations of brutal tactics and the indictment of key members like Ovidio Guzman Lopez, further highlighting the intertwining of crime, news, and politics.
