Ovidio Guzmn’s capture in Sinaloa, Mexico, before he left for the North American Leaders Summit
The defense secretary of Mexico waited hours before making a public announcement that the military had arrested Ovidio Guzmn, the son of Joaqun “El Chapo” Guzmn.
Guzmán is described as “a high-ranking member of the Sinaloa Cartel” in a press release issued by the United States State Department on December 16, prior to his arrest.
He was previously arrested by federal authorities in October 2019, but was released on the orders of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador to avoid further bloodshed.
Social media videos appear to show trucks on fire and intense shooting near the airport, which was closed for most of the day due to the violence. These videos have not been verified by CNN.
The secretary of public security in Sinaloa asked the public to stay out of the city as he said vehicles were being looted and blockades were taking place in different parts of the city.
The state’s education secretary told those in a risk area to take shelter in a safe place, and suspended school and administrative activities in Culiacn.
The President of the United States and the President of Canada are coming to Mexico City to attend the North American Leaders Summit.
Samuel González, who founded Mexico’s special prosecutor’s office for organized crime in the 1990s, said Guzmán’s capture was a “gift” ahead of Biden’s visit. He stated that the Mexican Government is working to have a calm visit.
“It also defuses the power behind any ask from the Biden administration to stem the tide of fentanyl and other narcotics across the border,” she added.
The State Department, which was offering a $5 million reward for information leading to Guzman’s arrest, wrote that law enforcement investigations indicated that Guzmán and his brother, Joaquín Guzmán-López, “inherited a great deal of the narcotics proceeds” following the death of another brother, Edgar Guzmán-López.
They “began investing large amounts of the cash into the purchasing of marijuana in Mexico and cocaine in Colombia. They began to purchase large amounts of ephedrine from Argentina and arranged for the import of the product into Mexico as they were experimenting with methamphetamine production, according to the State Department.
The father of the family, El Guzmn, was found guilty in the US of 10 counts including engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, drug trafficking and firearms charges. He was sentenced to life imprisonment plus 30 years and ordered to pay $12.6 billion in forfeiture.
Violation hits a Mexican cartel stronghold as the son of el-chapo is captured: David Tllez and his family in Culiacan
MEXICO CITY — David Tllez and his family were in Culiacan when the sun was not up and they were on their way to the airport to catch a return flight to Mexico. The first roadblock they found was an abandoned vehicle that was blocking their way.
While Téllez was on social media he saw that the state capital, which is a stronghold of the drug gang, was full of roadblock and gunfire.
The last time authorities tried to capture Guzmn, it was only the second time in more than a year.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador has railed against his predecessors’ aggressive efforts to capture drug lords, but his administration bagged the high-profile cartel figure just days before hosting U.S. President Joe Biden, and at least in the short term locals were paying the price.
The residents of Culiacan posted video on social media of a convoy of people in pickup trucks and SUVs driving through the city. At least one convoy included a flatbed truck with a mounted gun in the back, the same kind of vehicle that caused chaos and mayhem in the 2019 unrest.
Rev. Esteban Robles, spokesman for the Roman Catholic diocese in Culiacan, said that “there is an atmosphere of uncertainty, tension,” and that those who could were staying inside their homes.
Don’t leave home, warn the Culiacan municipal government. The most important thing for the citizens of Culiacan is their safety. Schools, local government and many private businesses closed.
Oscar Loza, a human rights activist in Culiacan, described the situation as tense, with some looting at stores. On the south side of the city where Loza lives, people reported convoys of attackers moving towards a military base, but there were no violent incidents around his house. “You don’t hear any traffic,” he said.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2023/01/06/1147342157/violence-hits-a-mexico-cartel-stronghold-as-the-son-of-el-chapo-is-captured
Ovidio Guzmn: A drug dealer targeted by fentanyl and most visible Chapos leader, and a violent reaction on Mexican Airlines in Culiacan
There the family hurriedly checked in for their flight before employees of an airport restaurant urged them to shelter in a bathroom. There were men in the airport trying to prevent Guzmn from leaving.
Juan Carlos has been studying the sociology of drug traffickers at the university, and believes that Ovidio Guzmn was an obvious target since 2019.
“Ovidio’s fate had been decided. Moreover, he was identified as the biggest trafficker of fentanyl and the most visible Chapos leader.” “People have differing views, but I don’t think many of them are with them,” he said.
That may be because of the money the cartel brings to the region, but also because locals know that even after federal troops withdraw, the cartel will still be there. The organization ensured relative stability if not peace as bad as it is.
The violent reaction had to do with the president’s stance toward organized crime, according to the director of local news outlet Riodoce.
“They (cartels) have taken advantage of these four years to organize themselves, arm themselves, strengthen their structures, their finances,” he said. “I believe there are more weapons than three years ago. This is the price that society is paying for the strategy of the federal government, as the armies of all organized crime have strengthened.
At Culiacan’s airport, a Mexican military flight was able to spirit Guzmán away to Mexico City. Téllez’s commercial flight waited for its chance to take off as two large military planes landed with troops as did three or four military helicopters, and marines and soldiers began deploying along the perimeter of the runway.
When the flight was about to accelerate, Téllez heard gunshots near him. The sound suddenly became much stronger, and passengers threw themselves to the floor.
He didn’t know the plane had been hit until the flight attendant told him. No one was injured, but the plane hastily retreated to the terminal.
He said that the shots that hit the commercial airliner were an act of international terrorism, and it could lead to very serious discussions between the two governments.
Source: https://www.npr.org/2023/01/06/1147342157/violence-hits-a-mexico-cartel-stronghold-as-the-son-of-el-chapo-is-captured
Guzmán vs. Culiacan: When they caught Téllez, they would have saved the day if they had not
By night, Téllez was in the terminal. The government had shut down the airport, as well as airports in Los Mochis and Mazatlan for security reasons.
Asked if the attempt to capture Guzmán was worth another day of tension and uncertainty in Culiacan, Téllez said, “If they caught him, it was worth it.”