El Chapo’s three sons – who remain in control of the Sinaloa Cartel – face extradition calls from the U.S. after Mexico handed over their brother

United States Attorney General Merrick Garland said the government is now seeking the extradition of the three sons of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, who remain in control of the criminal organization following the recent extradition of their brother, Ovidio Guzmán.

Iván Guzmán, Jesús Guzmán and Joaquín Guzmán, together with their imprisoned brother, also known as “Los Chapitos,” climbed the Sinaloa Cartel leadership ladder after their father’s arrest and extradition to the United States six years ago.

With Guzmán now facing multiple firearms, drug trafficking and money laundering charges in a U.S. court in Chicago, Garland expects the Mexican government will exhaust all measures to arrest his three siblings and bring them to trial for a US court.

“Obviously we have indicted the other Chapitos,” Garland said Wednesday as he was peppered with questions from California Rep. Lou Correa before the House Judiciary Committee.

“They have been publicly indicted and of course we will demand the extradition and arrest of everyone we have indicted.”

The Drug Enforcement Administration is offering a $10 million reward for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of Jesús Guzmán, one of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán’s three men who now run half of the Sinaloa cartel after their brother, Ovidio Guzmán, was murdered. extradited to the United States last week

Ivan Archivaldo Guzmán Salazar (pictured) joined his brother, Jesús Alfredo Guzmán Salazar, on the DEA’s 10 most wanted list

Joaquín Guzmán is one of El Chapo’s four sons who took over the Sinaloa Cartel after his arrest and extradition to the United States. But now only three remain in power after their brother, Ovidio Guzmán, was handed over by Mexican authorities last Friday.

Garland credited Ovidio Guzmán’s extradition to the Mexican military, which suffered significant troop losses in a war-like battle that left 30 people dead.

Ovidio Guzmán was arrested by Mexican marines during a gun battle in Culiacán, Sinaloa, that left ten soldiers dead on January 5.

The 33-year-old was extradited to the United States on Friday and pleaded not guilty during his first court appearance on Monday. His extradition came just two days after El Chapo’s wife, Emma Coronel, was released from a halfway house in Long Beach, California.

Federal prosecutors accuse Ovidio Guzmán of conspiring to smuggle fentanyl, cocaine, methamphetamine, marijuana and heroin into the United States.

Following El Chapo’s 2019 conviction, which landed him in prison for life, his four sons took control of half of the Sinaloa Cartel’s operations and became embroiled in an internal conflict with the organization’s co-founder Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada, who was never arrested.

Ovidio Guzmán was briefly detained at his home in Culiacán by the National Guard in October 2019. The incident sparked a battle with the military and police as at least 700 cartel members launched an attack that killed 14 people, including four civilians.

The backlash forced President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to call for the immediate release of Ovidio Guzmán to prevent further loss of innocent civilians.

In April, Los Chapitos were indicted in the Southern District of New York, the Northern District of Illinois and the District of Columbia.

Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán’s Sinaloa Cartel has played a role in the production and smuggling of fentanyl into the United States

According to the DEA, Los Chapitos supplies fentanyl to 27 cities in the United States

U.S. prosecutors allege Los Chapitos receives precursor chemicals to produce fentanyl from China and then manufactures it in clandestine labs in Mexico before smuggling it into the United States

During a press conference, Garland accused them of being at the helm of “the largest, most violent and most prolific fentanyl trafficking operation in the world.”

The government also alleged that Los Chapitos obtained precursor chemicals to produce fentanyl from China and then manufactured the dangerous drug in clandestine laboratories in Mexico before smuggling it into the United States.

El Chapo’s sons responded by attacking the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) through a public letter released to Mexican news channel Milenio.

“We are not the head of the Sinaloa Cartel nor are we interested in it,” Los Chapitos wrote.

“What does exist is a countless number of small and large groups that have their base in the state or are made up of people from Sinaloa and operate in other parts of the country or even in other parts of the world. These groups operate completely independently of others and are not accountable to us, nor do we ask for them.”

Iván Guzmán and Jesús Guzmán are wanted by the US government; a $10 million reward is being offered to each for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction.

There is also $5 million on offer for Joaquín Guzmán.