U.S. authorities have formally asked Mexican authorities to extradite Ovido Guzmán, son of notorious drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, following his arrest earlier this year, Mexican government sources said on Monday.

The US embassy has handed over to the Mexican State Department, with notification to the Attorney General, a file detailing the charges against Guzmán Jr., who was widely seen as his father’s successor in leadership of the Sinaloa cartel, one of the sources said. who asked not to be named.

Guzmán Jr. was arrested on January 5 in Culiacan during a bloody operation by the authorities – according to official estimates, 10 soldiers and 19 alleged thugs were killed.

Authorities and experts believe the 32-year-old took control of the Sinaloa cartel with the support of his three brothers after his father was arrested and extradited.

Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán is currently serving a life sentence in a maximum security prison in Colorado, USA, after being found guilty of drug trafficking and money laundering in Brooklyn federal court in 2019. The baron was released in 2017.

After his arrest in January, Ovido Guzmán obtained a stay from Mexican justice to delay his immediate extradition to the US authorities.

A Mexican judge has scheduled a formal US extradition request until March 5.

The US government is seeking the extradition of Ovido Guzmán and one of his brothers to stand trial for cocaine, methamphetamine and cannabis trafficking in the US.

Washington offered a fee of $5 million for each of the two brothers.

In Mexico itself, authorities accuse Guzmán Jr. of crimes against public health – drug trafficking – illegal possession and use of weapons. The judiciary is investigating him for leading a criminal organization.

The Mexican military arrested Ovid Guzmán in 2019, but their forces were forced to release him and retreat to “save lives” after a massive mobilization of heavily armed gang members raided Culiacan sectors of 750,000 people. The fiasco that led to this operation left the government of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador in a difficult position.

Source: RES-IPE