El Chapo's plea for transfer to a Mexican prison

Learn about the recent request made by Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán to President Andrés Manuel López Obrador for transfer to a prison in Mexico, citing alleged rights violations and cruel treatment in a U.S. prison.

El Chapo's plea for transfer to a Mexican prison
Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera, alias "El Chapo". Image: Wikimedia

Ovidio Guzmán López, also known as "El Ratón", is being investigated in Mexico by the Attorney General's Office (FGR). At least three crimes were committed in plain sight when he was caught in Culiacán, Sinaloa.

Near the end of the conference, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador was asked about the information that, at that moment, was coming out that Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán had requested that his intervention be transferred to a prison in Mexico.

In a radio program, his lawyer, José Refugio Rodríguez, broadcast the capo's message addressed to López Obrador, in which he argues that the administration of Enrique Peña Nieto, in particular, the then Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray, "violated his rights" by not allowing him to defend himself in Mexico before being extradited.

Guzmán denounced being a victim of "cruel and unjust treatment" in the maximum-security U.S. prison where he is serving a life sentence and said that he is probably being tortured. Surprised by El Chapo's request, the President said, "I have not seen, but we are going to see."

Hours later, it was reported that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had gotten the letter from Refugio Rodriguez's lawyer asking the Mexican government to help the drug trafficker get back to the country.

The message was sent to the Mexican embassy in the U.S. on January 10, and the embassy gave it to the Foreign Ministry "because it was their job," according to information shared last night on social media by the Mexican diplomatic representation, which also made sure to say that it had received a message and not a "letter from Mr. Loera."

Who is El Chapo, the Mexican drug lord?

Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán is a Mexican drug lord and former leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most powerful and influential criminal organizations in Mexico. He is considered one of the most notorious drug traffickers in the world and has been convicted and sentenced to life in prison in the United States for his involvement in drug trafficking and other crimes. He has been the subject of numerous investigations and arrests by Mexican and U.S. authorities over the years and has escaped from prison twice in Mexico.