Son of “El Chapo” pleads guilty to U.S. drug trafficking charges in deal with prosecutors
A son of a famous Mexican drug lord “El Chapo” pleaded guilty to drug trafficking charges in the United States on Monday, months after his brother reached a plea deal.
Known locally in Mexico as “Chapitos” or “little Chapos,” Joaquín Guzman Lopez and his brother, Ovidio Guzman Lopez, are accused of leading a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. In 2023, federal authorities described the operation as a massive effort to send “staggering” amounts of fentanyl into the United States.
US State Department via AP 
Joaquín Guzman Lopez pleaded guilty to two counts of drug trafficking and continuing criminal enterprise.
He and another longtime Sinaloa leader, Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, were arrested in July 2024 in Texas after landing in the United States aboard a private plane. Both men have previously pleaded not guilty to various drug trafficking, money laundering and firearms charges. Their spectacular capture sparked a surge in violence in the northern Mexican state of Sinaloa as two factions of the Sinaloa Cartel clashed.
As part of the plea agreement, Joaquin Guzman Lopez admitted to helping oversee the production and smuggling of large quantities of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, marijuana and fentanyl into the United States, fueling a crisis that has contributed to tens of thousands of overdose deaths each year.
His lawyer, Jeffrey Lichtman, congratulated the American and Mexican authorities.
“The government has been very fair to Joaquín so far,” he told reporters after the hearing. “I appreciate the fact that the Mexican government did not intervene.”
In July, Ovidio Guzman Lopez became the first son of drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzman to take a plea deal. He pleaded guilty for drug trafficking, money laundering and firearms charges related to his leadership role in the cartel. Legal experts called the plea deal an important step for the U.S. government in its investigation and prosecution of Sinaloa cartel leaders.
Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán is serving a life sentence after being convicted in 2019 for his role as the former leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, smuggling mountains of cocaine and other drugs into the United States over 25 years. The brothers reportedly assumed their father’s former role as cartel leaders.
