Mexican police arrested on Thursday (5) Ovidio Guzmán, 32, son of drug trafficker Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, one of the biggest drug traffickers of all time, said the country’s Secretary of Defense, Luis Cresencio Sandoval. He was captured in the city of Culiacán, in the state of Sinaloa. In response, criminals exchanged fire with security forces and set fire to vehicles.
Ovidio Guzmán is accused of leading the Los Menores faction, linked to the Sinaloa cartel. He is under the responsibility of the country’s specialized prosecutor’s office in organized crime and was transferred to the capital, Mexico City, on an Air Force plane.
The drug trafficker had already been arrested in 2019, but was released hours later in a concession made by the authorities to contain the escalation of violence. At the time, the chaos created by criminals increased pressure on President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who had taken office months earlier promising to pacify the country.
This Thursday, criminals seek to repeat the strategy and try to pressure the authorities. According to Sandoval, at least 19 blockage points were recorded in the city of Culiacán, home to around 800,000 people. Images on social media show vehicles on fire, and the presence of military personnel on the streets. Shootings were reported near the local airport, where a plane preparing to take off was reportedly hit by gunfire. There is still no information on deaths or injuries.
Sandoval highlighted that the capture of Ovidio Guzmán was the result of six months of work by intelligence teams, in a joint effort with various State agencies. The drug trafficker was one of the most wanted in the country — the US had offered a reward of 5 million dollars (BRL 27 million) for information leading to his arrest.
The day before, Mexican authorities deployed around 200 soldiers to Ciudad Juárez, on the border with the United States, to combat organized crime. The deployment of the military took place two days after an armed attack on a penitentiary in the same city ended with 26 deaths and the escape of dozens of detainees – 25 were still at large on Wednesday.
The crisis takes place a few days before US President Joe Biden’s visit to the country. The American should go to Mexico City next Tuesday (10) for a summit with AMLO, as the Mexican president is known, and Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada. The issue of migration is expected to be central during the trip – this Thursday, Washington announced a package of measures with the aim of alleviating migratory pressure.
El Chapo, Ovidio’s father and who was the most powerful drug trafficker on the planet, escaped in 2001 from Puente Grande prison, in the first of his spectacular escapes. He was recaptured in February 2014, but 17 months later he led another escape, this time from a maximum security prison.
He was arrested for the third time in January 2016 and, the following year, extradited to the United States. In July 2019, he was sentenced and taken to a maximum security prison in Colorado.
With a wealth of experience honed over 4+ years in journalism, I bring a seasoned voice to the world of news. Currently, I work as a freelance writer and editor, always seeking new opportunities to tell compelling stories in the field of world news.
