Prosecutors said that the Sinaloa cartel became the largest drug trafficking organization in the world thanks to Zambada and Guzmán.
Former Mexican cartel kingpin Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada pleaded guilty to drug charges in federal court in Brooklyn, New York, on Aug. 25.
Zambada, the longtime leader of the Sinaloa cartel, admitted to playing a role in a drug trafficking operation that funneled large quantities of illicit substances, including cocaine, heroin, into the United States for years.
Zambada’s attorney, Frank Perez, confirmed to The Epoch Times in an emailed statement that his client agreed to plead guilty to the charges, but said that the deal was “not a cooperation agreement.”
“He recognizes that his actions over the course of many years constitute serious violations of the United States drug laws, and he accepts full responsibility for what he did wrong,” Perez said.
“I can state categorically that there is no deal under which he is cooperating with the United States Government or any other government.”
The attorney also said that his client is aware that his actions will have an “impact” on his home state of Sinaloa and that Zambada “calls upon the people of Sinaloa to remain calm, to exercise restraint, and to avoid violence.”
The drug kingpin appeared in federal court to change his plea two weeks after federal prosecutors said they wouldn’t seek the death penalty for his charges of racketeering conspiracy and running a continuing criminal enterprise.
Zambada was arrested in Texas last year, after which he pleaded not guilty to a number of trafficking and other charges, including money and gun laundering.
According to prosecutors, Zambada headed a group of violent and militarized cartel members, which included a private security force with weapons and hitmen. That group has allegedly carried out assassinations, kidnappings, and torture.
The prosecutors said that the Sinaloa cartel became the largest drug trafficking organization in the world thanks to Zambada and co-founder Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.
The same Brooklyn federal court was the venue for Guzmán’s life sentence in 2019. Several of Guzmán’s sons, who were also allegedly involved in the drug business, face federal charges.
