Sinaloa Cartel Boss El Chapo Sons' Location Known but Mexico's Army Refused to Capture Them
Mexico's Army had information about the location of the two sons of Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman Loera. However, they reportedly decided not to go after them despite recognizing them as fugitives.
According to documents leaked by "Guacamaya" hackers reported by the Mexican news magazine, Ríodoce, the military received an alert from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in March 2016 that they had the location of Ivan Archivaldo Guzman and Joaquin Guzman Lopez.
Infobae reported that DEA agent Mathew A. Emrich sent an email on March 22, 2016, to an unnamed Army captain based in Mazatlan at Mexico's Sinaloa state about a trip of two of El Chapo's sons to the city in the next couple of days.
The four sons of El Chapo, namely Ivan, Joaquin, Ovidio Guzman Lopez, and Jesus Alfredo Guzman, are collectively known as Los Chapitos. They are major targets of U.S. and Mexican law enforcement for their leadership roles in the Sinaloa Cartel.
VICE reported that Emrich wrote to the Army captain: "It is possible that tomorrow we will get all the information about the trip along with numbers. If we get that info, would you be able to have a team to provide surveillance on the ground?"
The captain replied the same day, telling Emrich that although his superiors considered Ivan and Joaquin to be targets "of interest," they did not have an arrest warrant for their detention.
"These types of people are now unarmed or carrying low profile weapons to avoid going to jail. So we think we can't act on this, and that it is better to wait for another chance where we can find more evidence," the captain noted.
The captain added that it would be better to wait for more evidence and offered to provide "electronic support with communications" that could be useful to the DEA. Emrich reportedly replied a day later that El Chapo's sons did have an arrest warrant and extradition to the U.S.
"Thanks for the recommendation. We understand... We will monitor the situation and share the information with you. Both of the brothers do have a warrant for their arrest and extradition. Let's keep in touch," Emrich wrote in another email.
After this exchange of emails, no additional information was found about the Los Chapitos brothers' trip to Mazatlan, and no operation was launched for their arrest.
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Location of El Chapo's Son Ovidio Guzman Lopez Revealed After Hackers Accessed Mexico's Defense Ministry Data
A group of hackers, calling themselves "Guacamaya," has managed to gain access to Mexico's Ministry of Defense data. They managed to steal at least six terabytes of files from SEDENA's servers, which included confidential emails, documents, and videos.
Some of the confidential documents also revealed the possible location of Ovidio Guzman Lopez after Army officials intercepted communications between members of the Sinaloa Cartel.
The leaked documents revealed that Mexico's Ministry of Defense (SEDENA), with the help of U.S. authorities, intercepted radio conversations between members of the Sinaloa Cartel, who spoke about El Chapo's son.
In the conversations, Ovidio was referred to as "the Old Man" and "the Mouse." Members of the Sinaloa Cartel located in the Sierra de Sinaloa were discussing setting up a meeting with El Chapo's son.
At first, the radio voice, identified only as "UIM1," asked for "the Old Man," to which "UIM2" replied that he would talk to his boss to see if they could meet.
The SEDENA documents revealed that the location of the Sinaloa Cartel members in the conversations exercised control over the Sierra de Sinaloa, where Ovidio could also reportedly be found. A second intercepted communication on August 9 noted that one of the persons taking part in the conversation endorsed his loyalty to his boss.
The leaked documents showed that "UIM1" told "UIM2" that he pledged loyalty to their boss, saying he was "at the service" of "El Raton." Ovidio has been commonly known as "El Raton" or "El Nuevo Raton" for years.
Rewards for Capture of El Chapo's Sons, Known as the Los Chapitos
The Los Chapitos had reportedly assumed leadership roles in the Sinaloa Cartel after their father was arrested and extradited to the U.S. El Chapo's four sons had allegedly shared control of the Sinaloa Cartel along with their uncle Aureliano "El Guano" Guzman and co-founder Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada.
El Chapo has dozens of children, but only these four figured prominently in the Sinaloa Cartel's operations. Under their leadership, the Sinaloa Cartel has continued to be one of Mexico's most powerful drug cartels.
Last December, the U.S. State Department offered $5 million rewards for any information that could help federal agents arrest El Chapo's four sons. U.S. investigators said the Los Chapitos manage around 11 laboratories in their home state of Sinaloa that produce up to 5,000 pounds of methamphetamine monthly.
The State Department noted that the Los Chapitos are high-ranking members of the Sinaloa Cartel and are subject to a federal indictment for their involvement in the illegal drug trade.
The Sinaloa Cartel was founded in the late 1980s and headed by El Chapo, who was sentenced to spend the rest of his days in the ADX Florence "supermax" prison in Colorado after being sentenced to life imprisonment in 2019.
This article is owned by Latin Post.
Written by: Bert Hoover
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