Mexican Drug Lord ‘El Mayo’ Zambada Claims He Was Ambushed and Kidnapped

MEXICO CITY (AP) — Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, a prominent leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel, has claimed he was ambushed and kidnapped during what he believed would be a meeting with Sinaloa’s governor. His lawyer released a letter detailing the incident on Saturday.

In the letter, Zambada recounted being invited by fellow cartel figure Joaquín Guzmán López for a meeting with local politicians, including the governor of Sinaloa, Rubén Rocha Moya. The meeting was supposedly scheduled for July 25.

However, Zambada described a violent encounter instead. He stated that upon arriving at the meeting location, he was assaulted, hooded, handcuffed, and forcibly taken in a pickup truck to a clandestine airstrip. There, he was made to board a private plane that transported him and Guzmán López to the United States.

The timing of Zambada’s letter coincided with U.S. Ambassador to Mexico confirming that the drug lord had indeed arrived in the U.S. against his will, having landed in Texas alongside Guzmán López.

This situation raises concerns about possible connections between drug traffickers and politicians in Sinaloa, a region notorious for cartel activity. Governor Rocha, however, firmly denied any association with criminal elements and asserted that he was in Los Angeles on the day of the incident.

“There is no complicity with crime,” Governor Rocha asserted during an event in Culiacán, which also featured President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and the president-elect Claudia Sheinbaum.

“We trust the governor completely,” remarked López Obrador, attempting to quash rumors of collusion.

Rocha expressed frustration over what he perceived as attempts by political opponents to label him as involved in narcotrafficking. He vehemently stated, “If they said I was going to be there (at the meeting), they lied, and if he (Zambada) believed them, he fell into the trap.”

While Zambada’s letter did not directly accuse Rocha of being present at the supposed meeting, it mentioned a key figure, Héctor Melesio Cuén, a former congressman and mayor, who was identified as a “long-time friend.” Mexican authorities indicated that Cuén was murdered on the same day Zambada was abducted, reportedly at the meeting site.

Zambada also mentioned that one of his security guards, currently unaccounted for, was a commander in the judicial police of Sinaloa.

In early August, Zambada, now 76 years old, appeared for the second time in U.S. federal court in Texas after being taken into custody the previous week. Meanwhile, Guzmán López, 38, had been in discussions with U.S. authorities about potentially surrendering before the events unfolded.

Guzmán López has pleaded not guilty to several drug trafficking charges filed against him in federal court in Chicago.

U.S. officials reported receiving little advance warning when Guzmán López’s flight landed near El Paso. Both he and Zambada were arrested at that time and face various drug-related charges in the United States.

Ken Salazar, the U.S. ambassador to Mexico, noted that the plane taking them had originated from Sinaloa, with no flight plan filed. He also indicated that both the pilot and the aircraft were not American.

This leads to speculation that Guzmán López may have intended to negotiate on his own terms while bringing Zambada to leverage for more favorable treatment, although the details of his motivations are still under review.

Zambada has been considered the brains behind the Sinaloa cartel, often involved more in its operations than his notorious counterpart, Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, who is currently serving a life sentence in the U.S.

A faction led by Zambada has been embroiled in violent clashes with another faction associated with Guzmán’s sons.

As a key negotiator and significant player in the cartel, Zambada has maintained extensive networks of corruption through various administrations in Mexico, according to experts. He faces numerous charges in the U.S., including a new indictment filed in New York in February, where he is described as being at the helm of a vast criminal enterprise responsible for trafficking large quantities of narcotics into the United States.

Source: AP