Mexican poison lord ‘El Mayo’ enters guilty plea

Mexican drug lord Ismael’El Mayo’Zambada pleaded guilty to two drug smuggling and conspiracy charges in a New York court, ending one of the longest and most notorious crime causes in organized crime history.

Zambada is not just any poison lord.

He has been the founder of Mexico’s largest and most powerful criminal organization for many years – surprisingly globally.

Last year, he pleaded not guilty to a group of drugs smuggling, shooting and money laundering. But now, he changed his confession before a federal judge in Brooklyn.

In doing so, he formally accepted his role in building a massive criminal network that had sent large quantities of cocaine and other drugs into the United States, as he co-founded the cartel in the late 1980s.

The step comes weeks after U.S. prosecutors confirmed they would not seek death penalty for the 77-year-old Mexican king.

Zambada was arrested in Texas last year and his former ally’s son was Joaquín’El Chapo’Guzmán, the co-founder of the jailed Sinaloa Cartel.

El Chapo was sentenced to life imprisonment in the same court in 2019.

After his arrest, the cartel split into two main factions: one led by El Mayo and its rival, known as “Los Chapitos”. The conflict between the two sides continued to be intense, especially in Sinaloa itself.

In late July 2024, Zambada was allegedly lured to meet with one of El Chapo’s sons, Joaquín Guzmán López.

Initial reports suggest Guzman Lopez then boarded his competitor on board a light plane, but Zambada later claimed he was ambushed by Los Chapitos and overwhelmed him and was forcibly removed from office to Texas.

U.S. law enforcement officers were waiting for the plane while landing near El Paso, and the two were immediately detained.

By pleading guilty, Zambada is expected to receive a more tolerant sentence. His late 1970s were in poor health and might think that continuing to declare his innocence was futile, especially considering Guzman’s beliefs and life sentence in 2019.

It was confirmed last year that Guzman’s son – Joaquin and his younger brother Ovidio – both negotiated a plea deal with the U.S. government.

In May, officials accompanied Guzman and his family to the United States. Last month, Ovidio pleaded guilty in Chicago, involving multiple charges involving drug smuggling and involvement in an ongoing criminal business.

At his peak, Zambada was probably the most powerful poison ord in the world.

More shadows than other Kingpins (particularly El Chapo), they escaped global headlines from prison in 2001 and 2015 – Zambada is equally ruthless or calculated.

For about fifty years, he successfully escaped arrest or captive. During that time, he oversaw the transportation of large quantities of heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine into the United States through land, ocean and air.

Now, in U.S. courts, one of the most enduring names in global drug trafficking has accepted his role as one of the world’s largest and most complex criminal networks.

He will be sentenced in the coming months.