El Mayo Zambada’s Hearing: U.S. Attorney’s Office Could Seek Death Penalty 

This Friday, October 18, Ismael El Mayo Zambada’s first hearing was held, almost three months after he was arrested in El Paso, Texas, along with Joaquín Guzmán López -one of El Chapo’s sons-, who kidnapped him in Aztec lands to hand him over to the U.S. authorities on Thursday, July 25. 

What is Ismael Zambada charged with in the US?

El Mayo faces charges for cocaine, methamphetamine and fentanyl trafficking, among others.

Ismael Zambada was singled out by the Department of Justice as one of the biggest drug traffickers ever, as he celebrated his transfer from federal court in El Paso.

Who is Ismael Zambada’s lawyer? 

The hearing of the co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel took place after the United States Attorney’s Office pointed out a possible case of conflict of interest by his lawyer Frank Pérez, who is also in charge of representing El Mayo’s son, Vicente Zambada Niebla, El Vicentillo.

New hearing date set; process will be lengthy

Judge Cogan set the next hearing for the case for January 15, 2025, after assuring that this will “definitely be a long process.

By then it could be defined if there will be any determination on the potential conflict of interest that the prosecution has denounced because Zambada’s lawyer, Frank Perez, is also a lawyer for Vicente Zambada Niebla, the defendant’s son and current Washington collaborator.

In fact, Judge Cogan reproached the prosecution that it was only two days ago that it filed such a complaint. “Why did they wait so long?” he questioned.

Secret hearings.

Zambada is under more restrictive measures in prison

The US Attorney’s Office confirmed that Zambada García is under more restrictive measures during his detention at the Brooklyn Metropolitan Detention Center, known as Special Administrative Measures (SAM), which were also imposed on Joaquín Guzmán Loera, El Chapo.

Judge Brian Cogan designated the case as complex, due to the severity of the accusations and the dangerousness of the accused.

The case, which has been detailed as similar to that of El Chapo Guzmán, has the difference that it includes accusations of fentanyl trafficking and criminal offenses from the eighties until 2024, when he was arrested.

There is nothing that prevents the US Attorney’s Office from requesting the death penalty for Ismael Zambada García, El Mayo, former leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, as detailed during his initial hearing in the federal court of Brooklyn, New York.

Among the accusations that the capo faces are fentanyl trafficking, which could promote the request for the death penalty.

“Is there any impediment to extradition for the death penalty to be requested?” the judge asked. “No,” the prosecution responded. And the fact is that Zambada was not handed over by the Mexican government, but was kidnapped and handed over to federal agents by Joaquín Guzmán López, son of El Chapo,

How did El Mayo Zambada arrive to his hearing?

Ismael Zambada García arrived at the Brooklyn federal court in better shape, with long hair combed back and a thick gray beard.

Still limping and dressed in beige, he had his first hearing after being accused of 17 charges related to his leadership within the Sinaloa Cartel.

During the first hearing, Zambada García listened to the charges leaning on a chair and dressed in khaki, the traditional uniform of inmates under trial. 

He didn’t show any emotion and, with a calm voice, answered “not guilty” when asked how he pleaded to the 17 charges against him.

The United States prosecutors asked Judge James Cho to order preventive detention against Zambada while the process develops due to his high criminal profile.

The hearing will be presided over by Judge Brian Cogan, who on Wednesday, October 16, sentenced former Public Security Secretary Genaro García Luna to 38 years in prison for his relationship with the Sinaloa Cartel.

It is worth mentioning that Zambada García has been detained in the same prison as Genaro García Luna, after he was transferred to New York City.

The United States Attorney’s Office has asked Brooklyn federal court judge Brian Cogan to call a last-minute hearing to review a potential conflict of interest involving Ismael El Mayo Zambada’s defense attorney, Frank Perez.

In a communication sent to the judge less than 48 hours before the first hearing to prepare for trial against El Mayo, chief prosecutor Breon Peace warned Judge Cogan that Frank Perez, Zambada’s defense attorney, is still the defense attorney for the drug lord’s son, Vicente Zambada Niebla, El Vicentillo.

The problem with this, the prosecutor says, is that El Vicentillo decided to become a collaborating witness for the United States government in exchange for a reduced sentence, and to do so he agreed to testify at El Chapo Guzman’s trial about his own father’s criminal activities. 

Source: Milenio