The court ordered him held without bail and he is scheduled to appear before Judge Anne Berton next Wednesday, records show. His attorney did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Keegan Hamilton, journalist at Los Angeles Timesreported that “El Mayo” Zambada’s lawyer stated that his client pleaded not guilty to all charges in federal court in El Paso.
“I have no comment except to say that he did not surrender voluntarily; he was brought in against his will,” he said.
#Breaking : El Mayo’s lawyer says he just entered a not guilty plea to all charges in El Paso federal court.
Attorney Frank Perez: “I have no comment except to state that he did not surrender voluntarily; “he was brought against his will.”
Updated story coming soon @latimes …
— Keegan Hamilton (@keegan_hamilton) July 26, 2024
According to court records, “El Mayo” Zambada’s attorney is Frank A. Perez, a litigator specializing in federal crimes such as money laundering, organized crime, extradition defense and international drug charges.
Zambada and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, the son of his former partner Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman in the Sinaloa Cartel, were arrested in El Paso, Texas. Both face charges of channeling drugs into the United States, including the deadly fentanyl, which causes tens of thousands of deaths each year in that country.
“El Mayo” was wanted by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) and the State Department offered 15 million dollars as a reward for anyone providing information leading to his capture.
He faced charges for various crimes, including:
- Conspiracy to Possess a Controlled Substance (Cocaine and Marijuana)
- Conspiracy to import a controlled substance.
- Conspiracy to launder monetary instruments.
- Conspiracy to possess firearms in furtherance of drug trafficking offenses and aiding and abetting.
- Violent crimes in aid of organized crime activity and complicity.
- Murder while participating in or working to promote a continuing criminal enterprise or drug trafficking.
- Participation in a continuing criminal enterprise to promote drug trafficking.
- Conspiracy to kill in a foreign country.
- Kidnapping.
- Conspiracy to manufacture and distribute methamphetamine
- Conspiracy to manufacture and distribute fentanyl.
With information from Reuters.
