A Mexican drug lord, Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, who was apprehended in the United States, may be facing trial in New York City. Prosecutors have filed a request to transfer him from Texas to New York. Zambada is known as a top leader and co-founder of Mexico’s Sinaloa cartel and is facing charges in multiple locations across the U.S.
Zambada and one of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán’s sons were arrested last month after being flown into New Mexico. Zambada claims that he was kidnapped in Mexico while on his way to meet with a Mexican official. The 76-year-old has already appeared in a federal court in El Paso, Texas, where he pleaded not guilty to various charges including racketeering conspiracy and drug conspiracy.
Federal prosecutors in Texas have requested a hearing to facilitate the transfer of Zambada to the jurisdiction that includes Brooklyn, where Guzmán was previously convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment for drug and conspiracy charges.
If prosecutors are successful in their request, the case against Zambada would proceed first in New York before continuing in Texas. Zambada’s attorneys have not yet commented on this development, while federal prosecutors based in Brooklyn declined to provide any statements.
In addition to his involvement with the Sinaloa cartel alongside Guzmán, authorities allege that Zambada played a significant role as its strategist and negotiator. The cartel expanded from being regionally active into becoming a major manufacturer and smuggler of illicit drugs such as fentanyl pills into the United States.
Despite his prominent position within the cartel, Zambada managed to avoid incarceration until his recent arrest by U.S. authorities last month. He has had conflicts with Guzmán’s sons known as “Chapitos” or Little Chapos within the organization.
Concerned about potential violence resulting from Zambada’s arrest triggering power struggles within the cartel factions, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador dispatched 200 special forces soldiers to Sinaloa state while publicly urging them not to engage in internal conflicts.
