Washington/Mexico City: The United States on Tuesday imposed sanctions on a son of former Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, the Treasury Department said.
El Chapo, who was leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, is currently serving a life sentence in a U.S. prison. The sanctions allege Joaquin Guzman Lopez, one of the four sons to carry on their father’s drug empire after his arrest and extradition to the United States, oversees “super labs” to traffic drugs into the U.S.
Guzman Lopez could not be immediately reached for comment.
Guzman Lopez’s brothers Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar, Jesus Alfredo Guzman Salazar and Ovidio Guzman Lopez were charged last month in the U.S. with running a fentanyl trafficking operation fueled by Chinese chemical and pharmaceutical companies.
Ovidio was arrested this year in Mexico, where he is being held in a maximum-security lockup awaiting extradition.
In recent months, Mexico and the U.S. have sparred over the origins of drugs fueling the U.S. opioid crisis. Washington accuses Mexico of allowing cartels to produce the deadly synthetic opioid fentanyl and move it across the border.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador has denied the presence of fentanyl labs in the country, alleging it comes from China.
The Sinaloa Cartel’s drug labs are frequently supplied by an organization led by a pair of brothers, Ludim and Luis Alfonso Zamudio Lerma, who were sanctioned this year, the Treasury said Tuesday.
Guzman Lopez’s cousin, Saul Paez Lopez, was also sanctioned for his alleged role in coordinating drug shipments.
Raymundo Perez Uribe, was accused of providing precursor chemicals to manufacture the drugs.
Washington also sanctioned Mario Esteban Ogazon Sedano, saying he purchased precursor chemicals from Ludim Zamudio Lerma to operate drug labs.
None of the sanctioned individuals nor representatives for them could be immediately reached for comment.
The Treasury said the sanctions were coordinated closely with the Mexican government. The Mexican president has long bristled at U.S. involvement in the country’s security matters.
(Reporting by Rami Ayyub and Susan Heavey in Washington and Kylie Madry in Mexico City; Editing by Caitlin Webber, Doina Chiacu and David Gregorio)
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