Ovidio Guzman Lopez, one of the sons of notorious Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, has pleaded guilty to drug trafficking and other charges in the United States, marking the first time one of El Chapo’s children has accepted a plea deal with American authorities.
Federal prosecutors say Ovidio and his brother, Joaquin Guzman Lopez, were at the helm of a powerful wing of the Sinaloa cartel, infamously known as “Los Chapitos” or “the little Chapos.”
In 2023, U.S. officials described their faction as being behind the export of enormous volumes of fentanyl into the country.
As part of the plea agreement, Ovidio admitted to overseeing the production and smuggling of significant quantities of heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine, marijuana, and fentanyl into the U.S., drugs that have helped drive an overdose epidemic responsible for tens of thousands of deaths each year.
In addition to drug trafficking, he also pleaded guilty to money laundering and firearms offenses related to his leadership in the cartel. Specifics of the plea deal, such as potential sentencing terms or cooperation arrangements, were not made public.
Rumors of an impending agreement had circulated for months as negotiations reportedly unfolded away from the spotlight.
Jeffrey Lichtman, attorney for both Guzman brothers, said on Friday that he wouldn’t assess the merits of the plea deal until after sentencing is handed down.
Lichtman also confirmed that Ovidio has agreed to work with U.S. authorities, and that his sentencing would be delayed while cooperation is underway.
Whether he escapes a life sentence will depend on whether prosecutors deem him compliant with the agreement.
“I didn’t know whether the case against Joaquin Guzman Lopez could be resolved with a plea deal,” Lichtman added. “Remember, Joaquin was arrested in America well after Ovidio was, so it takes time.”
Legal expert Laurie Levenson, a professor at Loyola Law School and former federal prosecutor in Los Angeles, said Ovidio’s plea could have broader implications for both his family and U.S. authorities.
“In this way, he has some control over who he’s cooperating against and what the world will know about that cooperation,” she said.
Calling the move a “big step” for prosecutors, Levenson suggested that Ovidio’s insider perspective could become a powerful tool for dismantling the cartel.
“This is big,” she said. “The best way for them to take out the cartel is to find out about its operations from an insider, and that’s what they get from his cooperation.”
Mexico’s President, Claudia Sheinbaum, responded to the development by criticizing what she described as inconsistency in U.S. policy toward Mexican drug cartels.
She pointed out the contradiction in the U.S. labeling cartels as foreign terrorist organizations while simultaneously entering into plea deals with their members.
Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, who once led the Sinaloa cartel, was sentenced to life in prison in 2019 after being convicted of trafficking large volumes of narcotics into the United States for more than two decades.
His sons allegedly stepped into leadership roles following his imprisonment.
Ovidio Guzman Lopez was apprehended by Mexican authorities in 2023 and extradited to the U.S., initially entering a not-guilty plea before signaling in recent months his intention to change it.
His brother Joaquin and longtime cartel figure Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada were arrested in Texas in July 2024 after arriving on a private jet.
Both are currently in U.S. custody and have pleaded not guilty. Their high-profile capture triggered violent clashes in Sinaloa state, as rival factions within the cartel battled for dominance.
