MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – The U.S. government deported drug lord Osiel Cardenas Guillen to Mexico on Monday, transferring custody of the ex-leader of the Gulf Cartel to Mexican authorities at the border city of Tijuana, two federal government officials told Reuters.
One of the sources noted that the one-time cartel chief had been taken to Mexico’s Almoloya prison, and that he now faces three criminal charges, including one related to organized crime.
Cardenas Guillen was freed in August after serving more than two decades years behind bars in a maximum security U.S. prison, and since then has been held by U.S. immigration officials.
Prior to his capture in a 2003 gun battle, he presided over some of the bloodiest gang violence in Mexico’s turbulent past, blamed for transforming drug trafficking by embracing hyper-violent tactics including decapitations.
Cardenas Guillen also founded what became the notorious Zetas cartel, an armed wing of the Gulf Cartel made up of former army special forces, also known for extreme violence.
(Reporting by Lizbeth Diaz; Editing by Brendan O’Boyle)
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