The arrest of the fugitive leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García, 76, was very dramatic. Before his capture, he was apparently forcibly placed on the plane that took him to the United States by an FBI informant. This informant was one of the sons of the former Sinaloa Cartel leader Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán Loera.

(Photo: Joaquin Guzman Lopez)

Reconstruction

Zambada Garcia and El Chapo’s son were arrested Thursday aboard a small private plane that had just landed at Doña Ana County International Airport, a small airport outside El Paso, Texas.

A few days later, Zambada’s lawyer told the media that his client had been forcibly abducted from Mexico.

Outside Reconstruction From the New York Times it is now apparent how dramatic the course of events has been.

Appointment

Ismael Zambada Garcia usually travels alone in Mexico in a convoy of dozens of heavily armed men. But last Thursday he was alone with a small team of guards somewhere in the Sinaloa state capital, Culiacan, on a date with Joaquín Guzmán López, 38.

The latter is one of El Chapo’s four sons who is serving a life sentence in the United States.

security guards

Zambada Garcia descended from his mountain hideout for what he believed was a friendly meeting with Guzman Lopez.

At some point during that meeting, a violent confrontation broke out between Guzmán López’s bodyguards and Zambada García’s bodyguards, U.S. officials said. The exact cause and whether there were any casualties were unclear.

Anyway, the end of the song was that “El Mayo” Zambada was handcuffed and loaded into a Beechcraft plane at an airport, accompanied by Guzman Lopez who flew with him voluntarily, across the border into Texas.

“Federal” sources

The New York Times now reports, citing anonymous “federal” sources, that a small team of FBI agents has maintained contact with Guzman Lopez and some of his brothers for years. These sources confirm that U.S. authorities played no role in El Mayo’s abduction from Mexico.

Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador confirmed the contact at his daily press conference on Monday.

Mexico’s security minister said U.S. officials knew Guzman Lopez had been considering surrendering to U.S. authorities for some time in order to reach a deal.

Ovidio

The talks with El Chapo’s sons, which took place directly and through intermediaries, began nearly five years ago, shortly after the father, Joaquín Guzmán Loera New York, was sentenced to life in prison.

The FBI’s goal was to convince the sons (“Los Chapitos”) that it was better to avoid the father’s fate and enter into a “plea bargain,” where a reduced sentence would be obtained in exchange for an explanation.

The conversations became more intense and frequent after one of the sons, Ovidio Guzman Lopez, was extradited from Mexico last fall to stand trial in Chicago.

The possibility of Joaquin Guzman somehow extraditing Zambada Garcia to the United States was then discussed.

Motivation

According to the Times, Joaquin Guzman’s current motive is said to be twofold: On the one hand, it increases the chance that he and Ovidio will get favorable terms in their negotiations with the U.S. justice system.

On the other hand, it gives the two brothers who are still at large the opportunity to take control of the Sinaloa Cartel, since their main rival El Mayo has now been eliminated.

Guzman Lopez, like his brother Ovidio, will be tried in Chicago. It is not yet known where El Mayo Zambada will be tried.