Judge Allows El Chapo's Wife Emma Coronel Aispuro for a Fewer Restitution Payment a day After She was Sentenced 3 Years in Prison
The federal judge who sentenced El Chapo's wife, Emma Coronel Aispuro, to three years imprisonment, has decreased the restitution payment of the former beauty queen.
The move was done by U.S. District Court for the District Court of Columbia Judge Rudolph Contreras on Wednesday, a day after he sentenced El Chapo's wife for her connection on the Sinaloa Cartel, The Daily Mail reported.
Originally, Coronel Aispuro had a restitution payment amounting to $1,499,970. However, on Wednesday, Judge Contreras decreased that amount by almost one million.
To date, El Chapo's wife only needs to pay $511, 734.
"This Court determines, based on the evidence presented during the defendants [Aispuro] guilty plea hearing, that a forfeiture sentence... for $511, 734 is appropriate," a court document indicated.
Despite the decision, it is unclear what grounds led to the decrease of Aispuro's restitution payment.
Aside from the restitution payment, Emma Coronel Aispuro is also expected to pay $300 for three counts she pleaded guilty to during a court hearing held in June.
El Chapo's Wife Emma Coronel Aispuro Sentenced 3 Years of Imprisonment
The reduction in the restitution payment of El Chapo's wife came a day after she was slammed with three years of imprisonment after she pleaded guilty to helping her husband run the multi-billion dollar trafficking operation.
It can be recalled that in June, Emma Coronel Aispuro pleaded guilty on three federal charges including knowingly and willfully conspiring to distribute heroin, cocaine, marijuana, and methamphetamine. She also pleaded guilty to engaging in transactions with a foreign narcotics trafficker, and money-laundering conspiracy charge.
Originally, prosecutors from the U.S. requested a four-year prison term for El Chapo's wife. However, the judge handed a three-year sentence instead.
The Daily Mail reported that Contreras took into consideration several factors such as Aispuro was only 18 years old when she married El Chapo in 2007 and that she pleaded guilty to her charges after she was arrested at the Dulles International Airport in Virginia.
It is still unclear where Emma Coronel Aispuro will serve her sentence. However, her legal team asked the authorities that EL Chapo's wife be jailed in Los Angeles. The Federal Bureau of Prison under the U.S. Department of Justice will decide on where El Chapo's wife will be held.
Coronel Aispuro can reportedly be released by January 2024 or before, based on her good behavior.
Emma Coronel Aispuro Entered 'Safety Valve'
Although the former beauty queen was served with three-year imprisonment, Coronel Aispuro was originally facing a lengthy jail sentence.
However, her legal team sought a safety valve, an exception to mandatory minimum sentencing laws.
Attorney Mariel Colon, Coronel Aispuro's lawyer, said that her client meets the said exception requirements.
The safety valve exception required Coronel Aispuro to tell the government "all that she knows of the offense and any related misconduct."
Former DEA chief Mike Virgil said before her sentencing that Emma Coronel Aispuro can provide a lot of information about the Sinaloa Cartel including its drug route and supply sources.
Virgil also added that as El Chapo's wife, the former beauty queen can do a lot of damage to the Sinaloa Cartel.
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Written By: Joshua Summers
WATCH: Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman's Wife Emma Coronel Aispuro Sentenced to 3 Years in US Prison - From ABC7