Son of El Chapo pleads guilty in connection with running Sinaloa Cartel

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CHICAGO – A son of Mexican drug lord "El Chapo" who oversaw drug shipments for his father and then took over one of the Sinaloa Cartel’s most vicious factions after El Chapo’s arrest has pleaded guilty in federal court.

Ovidio Guzmán López, one of the four sons of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzmán, admitted to his role in the notorious cartel’s drug trafficking operation at the Dirksen federal courthouse July 11 in downtown Chicago, a city where cartel members made key inroads with local dealers. The Chapitos faction of the Sinaloa Cartel became known for discarding the few rules their father followed so it could dominate the illegal drug trade, according to experts.

Guzmán López’s guilty plea in Chicago comes at a point where the level of violence the Chapitos unleashed continues to rock Sinaloa. Mexican authorities recently found 20 bodies, including several that were decapitated and four that were left hanging from a bridge over a highway. They appeared to be victims of a turf war between the Chapitos and rival Sinaloa faction La Mayiza.

Authorities hope Guzmán López’s plea deal will help pave the way to further prosecution of the Chapitos and the Sinaloa cartel as a whole, experts say. It’s unclear what information "El Ratón," or "the Mouse" as he is known, has agreed to share.

"This is obviously a hugely symbolic case for the United States. U.S. prosecutors have made the Chapitos a top priority for years," said Parker Asmann, a Sinaloa Cartel expert with the organized crime research group InSight Crime. "Securing his cooperation could mean they could undermine the drug trade and attack corruption in Mexico they want to target."

Guzmán López admitted to four charges: two stemming from an indictment in Illinois and two from an indictment out of New York. The charges included international drug trafficking and engaging in a criminal enterprise.

U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman delayed sentencing but prosecutors and defense attorneys said Guzmán López could potentially face life in prison and will forfeit $80 million. The next hearing isn’t expected for six months, the judge said. 

Guzmán López’s lawyer indicated that he didn’t believe the government would ultimately recommend life in prison for his client.

Judge Coleman said the agreement left Guzmán López with almost no way of changing his mind and asked if he understood the stakes. He said he did. When asked, Guzmán López said his education took him as far as a semester at university and that he could read and write in English. 

In court, the 35-year-old appeared with his hands and feet shackled and flanked by U.S. Marshalls. He wore a beard compared to a clean-shaven look at the time of his arrest and said he was in good health aside from taking medication for depression. 

Mexican authorities captured Guzmán in early 2023, Paste BN previously reported, and he was extradited to the U.S. in September 2023.

What does the plea mean for cartels?

Guzmán López’s defense attorney Jeffrey Lichtman declined to share details of the plea agreement. He seemed to indicate that his client could shed light on corruption in Mexico and criticized comments from Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum that the U.S. was negotiating with terrorists.

“Far be it from me to defend the American government… they’re not exactly my friends in these cases,” the lawyer known best for representing El Chapo in 2018 told reporters outside the courtroom. “That being said, the idea that the American government would include the Mexican government in any kind of American legal decision negotiation is absurd.”

Lichtman referenced public corruption cases in Mexico and cartel leaders where he says Mexican authorities “did nothing.” 

Mexican authorities are essentially at war with cartels in parts of the country and attempts to capture bosses have led to full-scale battles.

It’s unclear what Guzmán López knows but cartel expert Asmann said Guzmán López was part of the “inner workings of the Sinaloa and the Chapitos” and should have useful information for prosecutors.

Asmann cautioned against the idea that sweeping changes will follow from Guzmán López’s cooperation.

“He may be willing to discuss the corruption but it remains to be seen if Claudia Sheinbaum would be willing to prosecute those people especially if they’re part of her coalition,” Asmann said. 

Chapito cartel members are likely worried by the plea deal, Asmann said. But he didn’t expect it to change much.

“It fragments these groups, causes infighting but ultimately doesn't stop the flow of drugs, it’s essentially a temporary disruption,” Asmann said.

What did El Chapo’s son do?

Guzmán López admitted to a range of charges in court that detailed when he became involved in his father’s operation, the role that he played and how he had a direct hand in ordering people to be killed. 

He became closely involved in the cartel around 2012 and became a key logistical coordinator in moving illegal drugs from South and Central America to the U.S. via everything from submarines to tunnels at the U.S.-Mexico border. 

Guzmán López also had a hand in making sure profits made it back to the cartel. Among ways they laundered the money, cartel operators relied on cryptocurrency, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors in court also tied the son of El Chapo to three killings in both the United States and Mexico. 

“Do you admit to your participation in kidnapping and murder plans?” the judge asked. “Yes,” said Guzmán López. 

The Chapitos became known for grotesque violence that appeared to surpass any notions of restraint shown by earlier generations of cartel leaders, according to cartel expert Asmann. Among changes, cartels targeted more civilians and engaged in public displays of violence.

The charges from the New York indictment focused on Guzmán López’s role in trafficking fentanyl, which has helped fuel an epidemic of drug use and deaths in the U.S. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 71,000 Americans died of overdose deaths from synthetic opioids – mostly involving fentanyl – in 2021.

Former Attorney General Merrick B. Garland called the cartel the "largest, most violent, and most prolific fentanyl trafficking operation in the world" in announcing charges against the Chapitos in 2023. 

El Chapo’s son also became infamous for his ability to rally the troops. Prosecutors in court alluded to an event known as the Battle of Culiacán, which came in 2019 when Mexican authorities attempted to arrest Guzmán López. 

Cartel members turned the capital city of the state of Sinaloa into a war zone, using improvised armored vehicles and rocket launchers to take on the Mexican military. An HBO series was made about the fight.

His arrest in 2023 also spurred gunfights across Culiacan. 30 people died, including 10 Mexican military personnel, the Associated Press reported.

Where is El Chapo? Where are the rest of the Chapitos?

Guzmán López’s notorious father is serving a life sentence in a Supermax prison in Florence, Colorado, the El Paso Times, part of the Paste BN Network, reported. Mexican authorities arrested him in 2016 and he was extradited in 2017. 

His sons, the Chapitos, then took over. They are Ivan Guzmán Salazar, Jesus Alfredo Guzmán Salazar, Ovidio Guzmán López, and Joaquin Guzmán López, according to the Justice Department. Ovidio Guzmán López was the first taken into U.S. custody. 

The Guzmán Salazar brothers remain at large. Department of Justice officials are offering $10 million for information that leads to their arrest.

American authorities arrested Joaquin Guzmán López in El Paso, Texas in July 2024. He has pleaded not guilty in the Northern District of Illinois and is awaiting trial, according to federal officials. 

U.S. prosecutors celebrated the deal they struck with Guzmán López.

“With each passing day, you are seeing the sunset of the Sinaloa cartel,” said Adam Gordon, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of California and is involved in the case. “The Chapitos’ latest violence reflects their fading future. Their leaders who remain free are now paranoid, distrusted and desperate.”