Gustavo Castillo Garcia
The newspaper La Jornada
Sunday, August 11, 2024, p. 5
Ishmael The May Zambada, one of the drug traffickers considered historical among the Mexican cartels, who was captured on July 25 by United States authorities, said that was ambushed
when he was expecting to meet with Rubén Rocha Moya, governor of Sinaloa; Héctor Melesio Cuén Ojeda, a politician and former rector of the Autonomous University of Sinaloa – assassinated that same day – and Joaquín Guzmán López, son of Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán, according to a statement released by his lawyer.
The litigator Frank Pérez published a text that he claims is A statement on behalf of Ismael Zambada
without explaining whether it is a testimony dictated by the capo or if his words were paraphrased.
The content of the document coincides with what was stated on Friday by Ken Salazar, the United States ambassador to Mexico, who said that Joaquín Guzmán López voluntarily surrendered to the government of his country, and that “the evidence at the time of arrival indicates that Ismael The May Zambada was taken against his will.”
The statement says that the co-founder of the Sinaloa cartel did not surrender or arrive voluntarily, and does not have an agreement with the US government.
In the same text, The May made a I call on the people of Sinaloa to use restraint and maintain peace in our state. Nothing can be solved with violence. We have been down that road before and everyone loses.
mentions: “Joaquín Guzmán López asked me to attend a meeting to help resolve differences between the political leaders of our state.
The statement, which also does not mention whether it was delivered to the US justice system, states that The May came to the ranch and event center called Huertos del Pedregal, on the outskirts of Culiacán
where he arrived accompanied by four bodyguards, including José Rosario Heras López, commander of the Sinaloa State Judicial Police, and Rodolfo Chaidez, a long-time member of my security team.
According to this, Guzmán López, whom he said he had known “since he was a child, gestured for me to follow him. Trusting the nature of the meeting and the people involved, I followed without hesitation. I was taken to another room that was dark.
“As soon as I set foot inside that room, I was ambushed. A group of men assaulted me, threw me to the ground and placed a hood over my head. They tied me up and handcuffed me, then forced me to lie on the floor of a van.
“Throughout this ordeal I was subjected to physical abuse, resulting in significant injuries to my back, knee and wrists.
“They then took me to a landing strip about 20 or 25 minutes away, where they forced me to board a private plane.
“Joaquin took the rag off my head and tied me to the seat. No one else was on board the plane except Joaquin, the pilot and me.
The flight lasted between two and a half and three hours, with no stops until we arrived in El Paso, Texas. It was there on the tarmac that U.S. federal agents took custody of me and them.
.
Regarding Héctor Melesio Cuén –politician and former rector of the UAS–, Zambada rejected the official version that was shot on the night of July 25 at a gas station by two men riding a motorcycle who wanted to steal his truck. That’s not what happened
.
According to the document, the former rector of the UAS He was killed at the same time and in the same place where I was kidnapped.
and points out that the same thing happened with the commander of the state Judicial Police José Rosario Heras López and Rodolfo Chaidez.
Zambada will face at least 17 charges in federal court in the Eastern District of New York, where he has also been tried. El Chapo Guzmán and former federal Public Security Secretary Genaro García Luna.
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