Attorney for Mexican drug lord says client ‘forcibly kidnapped’ by El Chapo’s son

By Rafael Romo, CNN

(CNN) — The attorney for Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, the alleged co-founder of the Sinaloa cartel, says his client “neither surrendered nor negotiated any terms with the US government,” but was instead kidnapped.

Zambada’s attorney forcefully denied any suggestion previously raised by Mexican officials that his client may have surrendered of his own volition or willingly come to the United States as part of a deal.

In a phone conversation and a statement sent to CNN Sunday, Frank Pérez said that Zambada, 76, was kidnapped by Joaquín Guzmán López, one of the sons of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, the other co-founder of the Sinaloa cartel, who was extradited to the United States in 2017 and is serving a life sentence in US federal prison.

“Joaquín Guzmán López forcibly kidnapped my client. He was ambushed, thrown to the ground, and handcuffed by six men in military uniforms and Joaquin. His legs were tied, and a black bag was placed over his head,” Pérez said in the statement.

“He was then thrown into the back of a pickup truck and taken to a landing strip. There, he was forced onto a plane, his legs tied to the seat by Joaquin, and brought to the US against his will. The only people on the plane were the pilot, Joaquín and my client,” Pérez added.

US law enforcement officials had previously told CNN that Joaquín Guzmán López had duped Zambada and orchestrated their arrest by making him believe they were flying to northern Mexico to look at real estate. Instead, the officials said, their small private plane landed north of the border near El Paso, Texas, where US authorities were waiting on the tarmac.

Zambada has been one of the most elusive figures in the criminal world.  He was able to lead the Sinaloa cartel for decades and, up until now, hadn’t seen a jail cell.  Mike Vigil, a former Drug Enforcement Administration agent who served with the agency for 31 years, described the alleged Mexican drug lord as “astute.”

“Mayo Zambada, prior to Thursday and over 50 years of involvement in the drug trade had never been captured, never served any time, so he is highly respected by even his rivals,” Vigil said.

Mexican Security Secretary Rosa Icela Rodríguez said Friday her government was not part of any operation to detain the alleged Mexican drug lords but clarified that the Mexican government is going to “keep collaborating with the United States government as we have done up until now.”

“You ask if (they) surrendered or were captured. That is part of the investigation and part of the information that we will be waiting for from the United States government,” Rodríguez told Mexican media, with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador by her side.

President López Obrador said, regardless of whether Zambada and Guzmán López turned themselves in or were captured, the fact they’re now in custody is an important step forward in the fight against drug trafficking.

“I believe that it is a sign that there we are working together (Mexico and the United States), even though in this specific case neither the Mexican Army nor the Navy participated, but the fact that he (Zambada) made the decision to surrender or leave, run the risk of going to the United States and getting captured there, means an important advance in the fight against drug trafficking,” the Mexican president said.

CNN learned Saturday that whatever action the US might have taken to arrest Zambada and Guzmán López prompted a furious behind-the-scenes reaction from Mexican government officials who are demanding senior US law enforcement officials explain exactly what transpired, according to a US official familiar with the operation.

The Mexican government is “totally pissed,” the source said, noting officials in Mexico were not briefed ahead of time on the planned captures.

US officials were hesitant to brief Mexican counterparts in advance due to fears the operation could have been compromised, a law enforcement source told CNN. The source noted details of the sensitive operation were also highly restricted within the US government until Zambada and Guzmán López were taken into custody.

The Mexican government has not responded to CNN’s request for comment on the diplomatic row between both countries following the arrests.

CNN has also reached out to Mexican officials for comment regarding Zambada’s attorney’s kidnapping claim.

CNN also reached out to Guzmán López’s attorney regarding the claim Sunday but did not receive a response.

Zambada entered a not guilty plea to all charges in US District Court in El Paso on Friday and is scheduled to appear in-person in that same court for a status conference August 1 at 11 a.m. local time, according to Perez and filed court documents.

The arrests of Zambada and Guzmán López mark a major development in decades-long efforts to capture and prosecute alleged cartel bosses. And the details revealed so far about what led to their arrests give a glimpse into the inner workings of what authorities describe as one of the world’s most notorious and nefarious criminal enterprises.

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