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Mexico president expects arrest to clarify drug lord's US transfer case
🇵🇾 Paraguay /Crime & Justice

Mexico president expects arrest to clarify drug lord's US transfer case

From ABC Color · () Spanish

Translated from Spanish, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Outcome reported
  • Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum expressed confidence that the arrest of a suspect linked to the 2024 kidnapping of drug lord Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada will help clarify the case.
  • The suspect, Fausto 'N', is accused of involvement in the cover-up of a murder and providing false statements related to Zambada's alleged kidnapping.
  • Zambada claims he was tricked into a meeting, kidnapped, and flown to the U.S. against his will, an event that triggered cartel infighting and violence in Sinaloa.

Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum believes the recent arrest of Fausto 'N', a suspect allegedly involved in the 2024 kidnapping of drug lord Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada, will shed light on the controversial circumstances surrounding Zambada's transfer to U.S. custody.

"I hope so," Sheinbaum stated during her press conference when asked if the arrest would help clarify what happened. She emphasized the significance of Fausto 'N's' capture, noting that the Attorney General's Office (FGR) continues its investigation into the events of July 25, 2024. On that date, Zambada, a co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, reportedly arrived in the U.S. via private plane with Joaquín Guzmán López, one of 'El Chapo' Guzmán's sons.

The president urged the FGR to provide further details on the arrest and its potential implications for understanding this pivotal moment in Mexico's recent drug trafficking history. "And the prosecutor's office should then report on how this arrest was made and the implications it may have for the knowledge of this case," she added.

I hope so

— Claudia SheinbaumPresident of Mexico Claudia Sheinbaum's response when asked if the arrest of Fausto 'N' would help clarify the circumstances of drug lord Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada's transfer to U.S. custody.

The FGR announced Fausto 'N's' detention in Mexico City for his probable involvement in covering up the murder of Héctor Melesio Cuén Ojeda, former rector of the Autonomous University of Sinaloa, and for making false statements. According to the FGR, Fausto 'N' allegedly accompanied Cuén Ojeda to the meeting where Zambada was purportedly kidnapped and witnessed the events. Authorities also contend that Fausto 'N' made contradictory statements and withheld information to mislead investigators.

Zambada himself has claimed that Guzmán López deceived him into attending a meeting in Sinaloa, where he was ambushed, kidnapped, and forcibly flown to the United States. This incident sparked a diplomatic rift between Mexico and the U.S. due to a lack of information and ignited an internal power struggle within the Sinaloa Cartel between factions led by 'Los Chapitos' and 'Los Mayos'. This conflict has fueled a wave of violence in Sinaloa state since September 2024.

And the prosecutor's office should then report on how this arrest was made and the implications it may have for the knowledge of this case

— Claudia SheinbaumPresident of Mexico Claudia Sheinbaum's call for the Attorney General's Office to provide more details on the arrest of Fausto 'N' and its relevance to the investigation into 'El Mayo' Zambada's case.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Color in Spanish. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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