Mexican officials announced on Wednesday that the families of 17 drug cartel leaders traveled to the United States last week, linked to an arrangement involving Ovidio Guzman Lopez, son of the former Sinaloa Cartel leader, and representatives from the Trump administration.
Omar Garcia Halfucci, Mexico’s security secretary, validated reports from independent journalist Luis Chaparo, stating that the family of Ovidio Guzman Lopez—son of the imprisoned Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman—entered the U.S.
Included in this group was Guzman’s ex-wife, Griselda Lopez Perez.
During a radio interview, Garcia Halfucci indicated that this arrangement stemmed from discussions between Guzman Lopez and U.S. government officials. He noted, “It’s clear that his family will go to the U.S. for negotiations or for offers from the Department of Justice.”
Interestingly, none of these family members were being pursued by Mexican authorities.
Online video from the Spanish outlet Radio Formula showed Guzman’s family at the Tijuana/San Diego border, waiting to be processed and reportedly carrying $70,000 in cash.
This confirmation by Garcia Halfucci coincided with an announcement from U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondy’s office, which stated that several cartel leaders would face accusations related to “narcoterrorism,” following Trump’s classification of these cartels as foreign terrorist organizations.
U.S. attorney Adam Gordon commented, saying, “You’re no longer a hunter; you’re the hunted”—a statement directed at Sinaloa Cartel leaders, emphasizing the shift in their power dynamics.
Ovidio Guzman Lopez, known as “Mouse,” is one of four sons of Guzman, who are referred to as “Los Chapitos.” They have been managing the Sinaloa cartel in the absence of their father, a former drug kingpin who significantly bolstered the cartel’s operations, making it a major player in the international drug trade.
Ovidio was arrested in 2017, handed over to U.S. authorities, and later convicted of drug trafficking among other charges; he is currently incarcerated in Colorado.
