Son of El Chapo pleads guilty to federal drug charges in Illinois

Joaquín Guzmán López, a son of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, has pleaded guilty to federal drug trafficking and organized crime charges in Illinois, admitting his role in operations linked to the Sinaloa Cartel.

The plea was entered on Monday before U.S. District Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman in Chicago, where prosecutors said Joaquín Guzmán López admitted taking part in large-scale narcotics trafficking and other criminal activity as a leader of the Sinaloa Cartel faction known as Los Chapitos.

Joaquín Guzmán López admitted receiving more than $10 million annually from trafficking cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and marijuana into the United States, according to MVS Noticias. He also admitted taking part in the 2024 kidnapping of Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, who was later brought into U.S. custody.

According to Milenio, prosecutors confirmed during the hearing that Guzmán López is cooperating as a witness for U.S. authorities and is expected to seek a reduced sentence, which could otherwise keep him in prison for the rest of his life; he is scheduled to return to court on June 1, 2026, for a status hearing before sentencing.

Guzmán López is the latest of El Chapo’s sons to face U.S. charges. His brother Ovidio Guzmán López pleaded guilty in July to four federal counts involving drug trafficking, money laundering, and firearms, admitting his role as a leader of the Sinaloa Cartel. Two other brothers, Iván Archivaldo Guzmán Salazar and Jesús Alfredo Guzmán Salazar, remain wanted by U.S. authorities.

The developments come months after Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García, the 75-year-old co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel alongside Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, also pleaded guilty in U.S. federal court to leading one of the world’s largest drug trafficking organizations.

In July 2024, Zambada was captured near El Paso, Texas, after being lured into U.S. custody by Joaquín Guzmán López, according to federal prosecutors. Both were detained when their plane landed at Santa Teresa Airport.

The incident, which drug-trafficking experts describe as a “betrayal,” sparked internal fighting between factions loyal to Zambada’s son and those aligned with the Guzmán brothers, leading to thousands of deaths and disappearances across parts of Sinaloa state in Mexico.