Mexican drug kingpin known as ‘El Escorpión’ is extradited to the U.S. to face charges for flooding L.A. with meth and fentanyl
A high-ranking member of the infamous Jalisco New Generation Cartel is in custody in the United States after being extradited from Mexico last week.
Juan Abouzaid is said to be responsible for coordinating drug transports and money laundering for the transnational criminal organization, according to the Ministry of Finance.
The 52-year-old was turned over to U.S. federal authorities in Mexico City on April 26 and is scheduled to appear in District of Columbia court on May 17.
Abouzaid, also known as ‘El Escorpión’ or The Scorpion, was arrested on March 9, 2021 in Zapopan, a city in the western state of Jalisco.
Juan Abouzaid was extradited from Mexico to the United States on April 26. He faces drug and money laundering charges in the District Court of the District of Columbia.
His arrest came just six days after the Treasury Department sanctioned him under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act for his ties to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, which smuggled fentanyl and other drugs into the US, including Los Angeles.
Abouzaid was first linked to the cartel after the Justice Department named him in a federal indictment in October 2018 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia.
At the time, the Drug Enforcement Administration’s Los Angeles Field Division alleged that in or about 2012 he conspired to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine while knowing and planning to import the drugs into the United States.
The Mexican government froze his bank accounts in June 2020 due to his ties to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, which is seen by criminal analysts as one of the country’s two most powerful criminal organizations, along with the Sinaloa Cartel.
The Jalisco New Generation Cartel has a presence in 23 Mexican states.
The United States is offering a $10 million reward for information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of cartel leader Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera.
The U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control on Wednesday accused Juan Manuel Abouzaid of coordinating drug shipments and laundering money for the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.
Juan Abouzaid, an alleged high-ranking leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, was sanctioned under the Kingpin Act by the U.S. Treasury Department on March 21. The Justice Department accuses him of coordinating drug shipments and laundering money for the Jalisco cartel. Cartel of the new generation
Ruben ‘El Mencho’ Oseguera is the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of Mexico’s most powerful criminal groups. The US government is offering a $10 million reward for information leading to his arrest and/or conviction
Abouzaid’s extradition took place following the April 21 arrest of El Mecho’s brother, Abraham “Don Rodo” Oseguera in the Jalisco city of Autlan de Navarro.
However, his release was shockingly announced on Tuesday by Security Minister Rosa Icela Rodriguez during President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s daily press conference.
Mexico’s federal judge, Rogelio León, ruled that there were no legal grounds to indict or keep him in prison.
Rodriguez questioned León’s decision, saying the Supreme Court had been approached but had not overturned the judge’s decision.
She added that US authorities had requested information about legal processes or pending complaints against Oseguera as part of a binational cooperation in the fight against drug and arms trafficking, but no information had been provided.
“This is a state matter that could seriously damage the prestige of Mexican institutions,” Rodriguez said.