CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Joaquín Guzmán López, a son of convicted Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán, made an appearance in a Chicago federal courthouse on Tuesday after his astonishing arrest in Texas.
In court, Guzmán López declined a Spanish interpreter and pleaded not guilty to U.S. drug charges, five days after his arrest in a dramatic operation in which he allegedly delivered Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, his father's former partner, to U.S. authorities.
Guzmán López was accused of money laundering, conspiracy, drug trafficking and faces weapons charges. He could face the death penalty.
After the initial court appearance at the Dirksen federal courthouse, Guzmán López’s lawyer, Jeffrey Lichtman, spoke to reporters.
“He’s accused of a myriad of crimes, not just [in] Chicago but in various districts, but Chicago is one of the cases, and it’s been a case he was charged in 15 years ago,” he said. “This is where they ended up. It could’ve been here. It could’ve been in other districts.”
Zambada has eluded U.S. authorities for years. He was thought to be more involved in day-to-day operations of the cartel than his better-known and flashier boss, “El Chapo,” who was sentenced to life in prison in the U.S. in 2019.
Zambada’s attorney, Frank Perez, alleged his client was kidnapped by Guzmán López and brought to the U.S. aboard a private plane that landed near El Paso. Perez pushed back against claims that his client was tricked into flying into the country.
Lichtman, though, who has represented other family members, rejected those ideas without going into specifics.
“There's been massive amount of rumors and things printed in the press. I don't know what's real. I don't know what's not real,” he said. “But it shouldn't really surprise anybody that there's a story that seems to be changing every few minutes, which means that much of what's being leaked to the press is inaccurate.”
Lichtman added that Guzmán López has no agreement with the government.
“There has never been an agreement with the government with Joaquin Guzmán López,” he said.
Guzmán López is due back in court at the end of September.
The U.S. government had offered a reward of up to $15 million for leading to Zambada’s capture.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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