THE Ovid Guzmanone of his sons imprisoned drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmánpleaded not guilty today in federal court in Chicago to fentanyl trafficking charges, three days after he was extradited from Mexico to the United States.

Ovidio, 33, is one of Guzman’s four sons, known as “Los Chapitos,” who inherited their father’s drug-trafficking empire after he was convicted in the US in 2019 of murder and drug trafficking. “El Chapo” Guzmán is serving a life sentence in a maximum security prison in Colorado.

U.S. officials said Ovid’s arrest and extradition is a major victory for President Joe Biden’s administration in its effort to stem the flow of fentanyl from the U.S. southern border. Guzmán was arrested in 2019 in Culiacan, Sinaloa State, but Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador ordered his release after security forces clashed with hundreds of Sinaloa Cartel gunmen in the city. He was recaptured in January after a shootout and the following month the US sought his extradition.

Fentanyl, a synthetic opioid, is responsible for nearly 200 American deaths on a daily basis. According to US officials, the Sinaloa Cartel is primarily the one that manufactures and exports the drug to the US.

Two of the six charges Guzmán faces carry a mandatory sentence of life in prison if convicted. The US has agreed not to seek the death penalty as part of extradition negotiations with Mexico.

Documents filed in court by prosecutors allege that Ovidio and his siblings are the leaders of an international drug-trafficking operation. Among other things, they used aircraft, submarines, fishing boats and other means to transport the drugs to the US. The State Department offered a multi-million dollar reward for information leading to the arrest of the four brothers.