Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman is escorted by soldiers during a presentation in Mexico City after his capture in January 2016. Thomson Reuters

The Mexican government said on Thursday evening that it had extradited Sinaloa cartel kingpin Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, long considered one of the most powerful cartel bosses in Mexico and in the world.

Earlier on Thursday, the Mexican Supreme Court dismissed appeals filed by Guzmán's lawyers in an attempt to halt the extradition.

"The judges decided not to hear the (appeal for) protection" from extradition, a source in the court told AFP.

That source said the court had passed the appeals to a different "collegiate" panel of judges for a ruling, and one of Guzmán's lawyers said that the kingpin's legal team would look at the court's decision and decide whether to appeal to a regional human-rights court.

However, in a statement released hours after that decision was announced, the Mexican government said Guzmán had been turned over to the US.

"The government of the republic today delivered Mr. Guzmán to the authorities of the United States of America," the Mexican foreign ministry said in its statement.

"Joaquin Archivaldo Guzman Loera, known by various aliases including 'El Chapo,' has been extradited and is en route to the United States to face criminal charges in connection with his leadership of the Mexican organized crime syndicate known as the 'Sinaloa Cartel,'" the US Justice Department said in a statement issued on Thursday evening.

Mexico's interior minister tweeted this image purporting to show "El Chapo" Guzmán in jail. Twitter/@osoriochong

After a July 2015 jailbreak, Guzmán was recaptured not far from his birthplace in Sinaloa state in January 2016. He was at first rejailed in the prison from which he escaped, but in early May 2016 he was transferred to a prison outside Ciudad Juarez in northern Mexico.

Security around the prison, Cefereso No. 9, was heightened upon Guzmán's arrival, with nearly 700 soldiers and guards in and around the prison. Many viewed the transfer as a prelude to extradition.

Guzmán — whose ill-gotten wealth earned him a place on Forbes' billionaires list and whose cartel once supplied "80% of the heroin, cocaine, marijuana, and methamphetamine — with a street value of $3 billion — that floods the Chicago region each year" — spent his time in solitude, reading "Don Quixote" and "The Purpose Driven Life."

An evangelical church member dressed as an angel messenger holds a placard reading, "Chapo Guzman, your Mother cries out for your soul," outside the prison where Guzman was held in Ciudad Juarez, September 24, 2016. REUTERS/Jose Luis Gonzalez

The Mexican government has received several extradition requests for Guzmán from several US District Courts.

In May 2016, the administration of Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto accepted two of those bids, from the Southern District of California and the Western District of Texas, to try Guzmán on charges including homicide, money laundering, and criminal association.

Guzmán's lawyers have waged a months-long legal battle to thwart the extradition, citing purported violations of the kingpin's rights as reasons to quash the transfer.

While it has not yet been confirmed where Guzmán will face trial in the US — should his case not be concluded with a plea or deal beforehand — the kingpin is reportedly headed to New York City. According to AFP's Laurent Thomet, the kingpin is slated to arrive at 10 p.m. ET.

The Eastern District of New York, based in Brooklyn, is one of the seven US District Courts with indictments pending against the Sinaloa cartel chief. The Eastern District's indictment charges Guzmán with overseeing a trafficking cartel and accuses him and other Sinaloa cartel leaders of hiring hit men who conspired to committ murder, torture, and kidnapping.

Guzmán is headed to New York because the city's federal courts have "a history of trying very complex conspiracy cases," Mike Vigil, a former chief of international operations for the US Drug Enforcement Administration, told Business Insider on Thursday evening.

Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman sits inside a federal police helicopter at a navy hanger in Mexico City, after being captured in Matazlan, Sinaloa state, February 22, 2014. AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo

New York's history with high-profile defendants and complex cases was an important selling point, as "they want to make sure Guzmán gets convicted, because it would be very embarrassing for the United States to solicit his extradition and not get a conviction," said Vigil, author of of " Metal Coffins: The Blood Alliance Cartel."

The US attorney in Miami, another District Court with an indictment against Guzmán, joined the Eastern District's case as a special counsel in mid-2016. There is also a possibility the indictments issued by the courts in Texas and California will be consolidated with the New York case, Vigil said.

Guzmán's extradition appears to have been deliberately timed.

US President Barack Obama, right, shakes hands with Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto during their meeting at the White House, January 6, 2015. Kevin Lamarque/Reuters

Coming just hours before US President-elect Donald Trump takes office, the Mexican government sent the kingpin north "because they want to make sure President Obama gets credit for the extradition," Vigil told Business Insider, citing conversations he had with Mexican officials.

Trump, who dedicated much of his campaign to denouncing Mexico and Mexican immigrants, is not held in high regard among Mexican policymakers, Vigil said. "They didn't want Trump to get credit."

In the months prior to Guzmán's extradition, other observers suggested the Peña Nieto administration may tried to time the transfer in order to ingratiate itself with the incoming Trump administration.

Whatever the motivation, the extradition comes just days before Mexican Economy Minister Ildefonso Guajardo and Foreign Minister Luis Videgaray travel to Washington to meet with Trump's chief of staff, Reince Priebus and other adivsers, including Jared Kushner and National Security Adviser Michael Flynn.

Videgaray, recently appointed to the foreign ministry after stepping down from the finance ministry in September, has ties to Kushner and is viewed as a potential go-between with Washington for the Peña Nieto administration.

While the news of Guzmán's extradition came as a surprise, it's likely US and Mexican authorities have been coordinating on the transfer, especially if it was meant to happen just before the end of Obama's term.

US Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto shake hands at a press conference at the Los Pinos residence in Mexico City, August 31, 2016. REUTERS/Henry Romero

"The US government at the highest levels is coordinating closely with the Mexican executive branch at the highest levels to make sure that if the judicial system in Mexico does ultimately approve of his extradition, that the United States has some slight advance notice and to where he will be sent," Peter Vincent, a former legal adviser at the US Department of Homeland Security, told Business Insider in September 2016.

Guzmán was jailed twice in Mexico, escaping both times before his ultimate capture in January 2016. He has guided his cartel from the rugged hills of northwest Mexico to the top of Mexico's narco hierarchy, along the way waging bloody wars on rival cartels and against the Mexican government.

His transfer to the US is a "great moral victory," Vigil told Business Insider.

"His extradition to the United States will remove him from his criminal infrastructure, but it's not going to have any impact on drug trafficking, because the Sinaloa cartel" — still one of the most powerful cartels in Mexico and in the world — "will continue to function," Vigil said, citing the cartel's resilient leadership structure.

"They have a very strong bench."</s>Mexican authorities on Thursday extradited drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán to the United States to face numerous charges.



In a statement, the Mexican Secretariat of Foreign Affairs said a court decided to deny Guzmán appeals and granted his extradition. The Associated Press reported that drug lord was being flown to New York.

Guzmán’s extradition had been expected for months, but it was uncertain exactly when he would be sent to the US to face drug-related crimes, including murder, assassination, and kidnapping.

New York isn’t the only state that wants him. Guzmán also faces federal charges in California, Chicago, Texas, Florida.



The drug lord gained legendary status after escaping from two Mexican prisons and was one of the world’s most wanted fugitives.

His last escape from a maximum security prison was in 2015, when he used an elaborate underground tunnel built under his cell to get out, much to the embarrassment of the Mexican government. In 2001, he fled Puente Grande prison, where he had been incarcerated since 1993.

Guzmán, who grew up poor in Sinaloa, Mexico, worked his way up Mexican criminal organizations and became known for his violent business practices. Eventually he headed the Sinaloa Cartel and was considered the most powerful drug kingpin in the world.

Guzmán was captured in a January 2016 raid led by Mexican Marines. A day after the raid, it was revealed that actor Sean Penn had traveled to Mexico to interview Guzmán for a Rolling Stone piece.

The meeting “was an essential element, because we were following [Guzmán’s] lawyer, and the lawyer took us to these people and to this meeting,” Mexican Attorney General Arely Gomez told local radio.

Mexican actor Kate del Castillo, who had corresponded with Guzmán and expressed interest in making a biopic about him, helped broker the meeting between the cartel leader and Penn.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates and follow BuzzFeed News on Twitter.</s>Former leader of the Sinaloa Cartel has been handed over to US authorities

“El Chapo” Guzmán, one of Mexico’s most famous drug lords, is on his way to face criminal charges in the United States, the Secretariat of Foreign Affairs has announced.

Joaquín Guzmán, former leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, was removed from his cell at a federal prison in Ciudad Juárez this afternoon in preparation for extradition to the U.S.

A statement released by the Foreign Affairs Secretariat said a court decided today to reject a request for an amparo, or legal protection, against extradition.

“. . . today, the government of the republic handed over Mr. Guzmán to the authorities of the Unites States of America,” the statement said.

The newspaper Milenio reported that the former cartel boss had been transferred from Cefereso No. 9 in Juárez to that city’s international airport to be flown to the U.S.

CNN reported that it had been told by a U.S. official that Mexican authorities had planned to hand Guzmán over before tomorrow’s inauguration of president-elect Donald Trump.

Government officials said last fall they expected the hand-over to take place early this year. January marks the first anniversary of Guzman’s capture in Sinaloa, six months after a spectacular escape through a 1.5-kilometer tunnel from the Altiplano federal prison in the State of México.

He had been in custody since February 14 when he was arrested in Mazatlán.

In the U.S. he will face charges of money laundering, drug trafficking, kidnapping and murder.

Stories from our archives that you might enjoy</s>Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman has been extradited to the United States.

In a short statement, the US Justice Department said Guzman is "en route to the United States to face criminal charges in connection with his leadership of the Mexican organized crime syndicate known as the 'Sinaloa Cartel.'"</s>Mexican drug lord 'El Chapo' being extradited to the U.S.

Infamous Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman is being extradited to the United States.

A spokesman for the Mexican Attorney General confirmed the extradition to ABC News Thursday. The spokesperson would not confirm where in the U.S. El Chapo was being transported.

El Chapo was recaptured last year after he escaped Mexican prison for the third time. He spent six months on the run.</s>Mexico has extradited drug kingpin Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán to the United States — handing US authorities a massive drug case on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration.

Guzmán is the head of the Sinaloa cartel, which is accused of generating much of the deadly violence in Mexico and providing tons of drugs to the United States.

The Mexican government "delivered Mr. Guzmán Loera to the authorities of the United States" after Mexican courts rejected his latest appeal to avoid extradition, the country's foreign ministry said in a statement.

The appeals court ruled that the extradition conformed with a bilateral treaty and that Guzmán's rights had not been violated, the statement said.

The government did not say to which state Guzmán was sent. CNN and ABC News reported that Guzmán was headed to New York. The Wall Street Journal reported that the US authorities plan to try him in a federal court in Brooklyn, New York.

A US government official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, would only confirm to AFP that Guzmán was already on US soil.

Guzmán — whose nickname "El Chapo" is Mexican slang for "shorty" — is the most recognized face of the Mexican drug trade.

When Mexico discussed extraditing Guzmán in January 2016, experts told The World it may have been to avoid another embarrassing escape of the most-wanted drug lord from custody. El Chapo escaped twice from prison in Mexico.

In May, the Mexican foreign ministry approved extradition bids from California, where he is wanted for drug distribution, and Texas, where he faces a slew of charges including murder and money laundering.

Trump, who takes office on Friday, has publicly clashed with Mexico over trade and immigration issues. The Republican president-in-waiting has pledged to build a wall on the US-Mexican border.</s>(NBC) Mexico’s government says it has extradited drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman to the United States.

 The infamous drug kingpin was recaptured last January after tunneling out of a maximum security Mexican prison.

A U.S. official told NBC News that Guzman was being flown to the New York by Mexican authorities.

“El Chapo” is wanted in the U.S. on drug trafficking and other charges.

The convicted boss of the Sinaloa Cartel was held most recently in a prison near the border city of Ciudad Juarez near El Paso.</s>Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman has been extradited to the United States, according to a statement by the Mexican Foreign Ministry.

Mexican authorities had planned to turn Guzman, head of the Sinaloa cartel, over before Friday’s inauguration of President-elect Donald Trump, a US official told CNN’s Evan Perez.

Guzman and other cartel leaders were indicted in 2009 in US District Court in Brooklyn, New York, on charges of conspiring to import more than 264,000 pounds of cocaine into the United States between 1990 and 2005. The alleged traffickers are accused of sharing drug transportation routes and obtaining their drugs from various Colombian drug organizations.

Guzman also faces charges in Arizona, California, Texas, Illinois, New York, Florida and New Hampshire.

Check back for updates on this developing story.

Here’s a look at the life of Joaquín Guzmán, otherwise known as “El Chapo,” a Mexican drug lord who has repeatedly broken out of prison, and has been extradited to the United States to stand trial on federal charges.

Marriages: Believed to have been married at least three times, the most recent being Emma Coronel Aispuro (2007-present)

Children: Is purported to have fathered between 12 and 13 children

Leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, which the US Justice Department describes as “one of the world’s most prolific, violent and powerful drug cartels,” moving billions upon billions of dollars in marijuana, cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine.

Was able to continue running the Sinaloa Cartel in prison through bribes.

The Sinaloa Cartel controls roughly 40% to 60% of Mexico’s drug trade, with earnings at around $3 billion annually.

Claimed in 2014 that he has killed 2,000-3,000 people.

Is said to be semi-illiterate, receiving no formal education beyond third grade.

Is known for using intricate tunnel systems for both evading authorities and moving the massive quantities of drugs that made the Sinaloa Cartel so powerful.

His cartel has produced, smuggled and distributed marijuana, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine and other types of drugs.

Has appeared on both Forbes’ World’s Billionaires List and Most Powerful People List.

According to the US Treasury Department, he is the most “powerful drug trafficker in the world.”

Guzmán is perceived by some as a hero, with many narcocorridos, “drug ballads,” that glorify kingpins, written in his honor.

Guzmán faces charges in 10 legal cases in Mexico, as well as federal charges in Arizona, California, Texas, Illinois, New York, Florida and New Hampshire.

1970s – Begins running drugs to major Mexican cities and the US border and working with major drug traffickers such as Miguel Angel Felix Gallardo, leader of the Guadalajara.

1980s – Member of the Guadalajara Cartel. After the arrest of Miguel Ángel Felix Gallardo, the cartel splits into factions. Guzmán becomes leader of the Sinaloa Cartel Pacific coast faction.

February 1992 – Police find the bodies of six Guzmán’s top lieutenants dumped along Tijuana highways; the six men had been tortured and shot.

November 1992 – Six people are gunned down at a discotheque in Puerto Vallarta by gunmen working for Guzmán, whose targets are traffickers in the Tijuana Cartel.

May 1993 – Gunmen with the Tijuana Cartel attempt to assassinate Guzmán in retribution, firing upon a vehicle at an airport. Guzmán escapes unharmed, but Cardinal Archbishop of Guadalajara Juan Jesús Posadas Ocampa, is killed accidentally, along with six others.

June 9, 1993 – Wanted on charges of drug trafficking, murder and kidnapping, he is arrested in Guatemala and extradited to Mexico. Guzmán is subsequently sentenced to a minimum of 20 years in a maximum security prison.

Early 2000s – Violence across Mexico escalates as El Chapo’s Sinaloa Cartel attempts to encroach upon Tijuana and Gulf Cartel territory.

January 19, 2001 – Escapes the maximum-security Puente Grande prison in Jalisco, Mexico, in a laundry cart. The planned escape requires bribes and cooperation allegedly costing him $2.5 million, according to Malcolm Beith’s book, “The Last Narco.”

2004 – The US government announces a $5 million reward for information leading to Guzmán’s arrest and conviction.

May 2008 – Guzmán’s son is murdered in a parking lot shootout near Culican, Mexico.

2009 – Guzmán and other cartel leaders are indicted on charges of conspiring to import more than 264,000 pounds of cocaine into the United States between 1990 and 2005.

August 2011 – Guzmán’s wife, Emma, who has dual US-Mexican citizenship, gives birth to twin girls in a hospital outside of Los Angeles.

2012 – The US Treasury Department uses the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act to freeze the US assets of his relatives.

February 22, 2014 – Guzmán is apprehended at a beach resort in Mazatlán, Mexico.

July 11, 2015 – Escapes the maximum-security Altiplano Federal Prison near Toluca, Mexico, by crawling through an opening in the shower area of his cell block leading to a nearly mile-long tunnel.

October 2015 – While on the run, he meets with movie star Sean Penn and Mexican actress Kate del Castillo. Penn’s interview with Guzmán subsequently runs in Rolling Stone magazine. “I supply more heroin, methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana than anybody else in the world,” Guzmán is quoted in the interview. “I have a fleet of submarines, airplanes, trucks and boats.”

January 8, 2016 – Guzmán is recaptured by Mexican authorities in Los Mochis, Sinaloa, after a raid leads to a shootout in which five people connected to Guzmán are killed.

May 9, 2016 – A judge in Mexico approves the US’s request to extradite Guzmán, who faces charges in seven states. Once extradited, he will be sent to Brooklyn, New York, to stand trial on federal charges.</s>Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán, the infamous Mexican drug lord, was extradited to the U.S., where he faces six indictments for crimes including drug trafficking, homicide and money laundering.

Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, the Mexican drug lord who evaded U.S. authorities for years and built a billion-dollar narcotics empire, is expected to make his first appearance in a U.S. courtroom on Friday.

Mr. Guzmán, who successfully escaped twice from maximum-security prisons in Mexico, was extradited to the U.S. late Thursday. His arrival came as a surprise to many, even to U.S. officials, who said Friday that they didn't know he...</s>MEXICO CITY (CBS4) – Mexico’s most notorious drug kingpin, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, was extradited to the United States Thursday to face several drug charges, including drug trafficking.

CBS News reports several senior U.S. officials confirmed the move.

The Drug Enforcement Administration took custody of Guzman in Cuidad Juarez, just across the border from El Paso, Texas, and put him on a plane bound for New York.

Guzman faces charges in several different U.S. jurisdictions, including in New York. It is likely that he will face trial in Brooklyn, but that has not been publically reported by the Department of Justice.

“The government of the Republic announces that today the Fifth Appellate Criminal Court in Mexico City ruled to deny the protection of the Federal Justice system to Joaquín Guzmán Loera against the agreements made by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on May 20, 2016 which permitted his extradition to the United States of America in order to be tried for various crimes, after finding that those agreements complied with constitutional requirements, the requirements of bilateral treaties and other legal rulings that are in effect and that his human rights were not and have not been violated by these proceedings,” the Mexican government said.

The leader of the Sinaloa cartel twice escaped from maximum-security prisons in Mexico, most recently in 2015. He was found in January and was until Thursday imprisoned in the northern Mexican border state of Chihuahua.
Mexican drug lord Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán is extradited to the United States, where he will face charges for his role as leader of the Sinaloa Cartel.