Ovidio Guzman, a son of imprisoned Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, was extradited to the United States on Friday to face fentanyl trafficking charges. This extradition is seen as another step in the American government’s efforts to attack the drug trafficking operations of the Sinaloa Cartel, which has long been associated with the Guzman family. U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland expressed gratitude to the Mexican government for their cooperation in this process.
The Justice Department aims to hold accountable those responsible for fueling the opioid epidemic that has devastated communities across the country. Ovidio Guzman, one of the heirs to his father’s trafficking empire, was briefly arrested in 2019 but later released to avoid bloodshed. He was captured in January after a firefight in Sinaloa.
U.S. officials have portrayed Mr. Guzman and his brothers as a major threat, particularly regarding the fentanyl trade, which is responsible for killing nearly 200 Americans daily. This situation has caused tensions between the U.S. and Mexico. The U.S. government requested Mr. Guzman’s extradition in February to face charges in a U.S. court. Extradition proceedings for prominent Mexican drug traffickers can take years, but in this case, the process was quicker than that of his father.
According to U.S. court documents, Mr. Guzman and his brothers allegedly controlled extensive international operations in the fentanyl trade, making millions of dollars in profits by flooding the United States with the drug. Their involvement in the synthetic opioid has contributed to the intensification of the country’s opioid epidemic, catching the attention of U.S. anti-narcotics agents.
The State Department has offered a substantial reward for information leading to the arrest or conviction of Ovidio Guzman and his brothers. Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, Ovidio’s father, was a prominent figure at the head of the Sinaloa Cartel. He was extradited to the United States in 2017 after escaping from prison in Mexico twice. Currently, he is imprisoned in a highly secure facility in Colorado.