The letter in which ‘El Mayo’ made his statement was distributed by his lawyer Frank Pérez. The authorship of the document is attributed to Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada, but the text is without his signature.
Never before in his history had ‘El Mayo’ Zambada, born in January 1948 in the community of El Álamo, in Sinaloa, been arrested. He became one of the priority targets of the Mexican and US authorities, but he was not captured until July 25, when he “appeared” detained in the state of Texas, arriving on a plane that also carried Joaquín Guzmán López.
The version that was made known in this document allegedly released by Zambada’s lawyer, refers to the Sinaloa drug lord having mentioned that on July 25: “Joaquín Guzmán López asked me to attend a meeting to help resolve differences between the political leaders of our state.
“I was aware of a dispute between Rubén Rocha Moya, the governor of Sinaloa, and Héctor Melesio Cuen Ojeda, former federal congressman, mayor of Culiacán and former rector of the UAS, over who should lead that institution.”
In this regard, the rectorship of the UAS became a point of dispute between Governor Rocha Moya and Cuen Ojeda, since the Sinaloa governor allegedly intended to break up the control group headed by Cuen Ojeda.
According to the released document, Mayo states that those who convened the meeting “told him that, in addition to Héctor Cuén and Governor Rocha Moya, Iván Guzmán Salazar would also be present.”
Iván Guzmán is considered, along with his brother Alfredo, to be the leaders of one of the most powerful factions of the Sinaloa Cartel, the main producers and traffickers of synthetic drugs and fentanyl to the United States. Both are known by the authorities of the United States and Mexico as ‘Los Chapitos’.
In the document, ‘El Mayo’ Zambada allegedly said that on “July 25, I went to the ranch and event center called Huertos del Pedregal on the outskirts of Culiacán, where the meeting was to take place.”
“The meeting was scheduled for 11:00 am and I arrived a little early. I saw a large number of armed men in green military uniforms who I assumed were gunmen for Joaquin Guzman and his brothers.
“I was accompanied by four members of the security staff, two of whom stayed outside the perimeter. The two who went in with me were José Rosario Heras López, commander of the Sinaloa State Judicial Police, and Rodolfo Chaidez, a long-time member of my security team.
“As I walked toward the meeting area, I saw Hector Cuen and one of his assistants. I greeted them briefly before entering a room that had a table full of fruit. I saw Joaquin Guzman Lopez, whom I have known since I was a child, and he gestured for me to follow him.
“Trusting the nature of the meeting and the people involved, I went ahead without hesitation. I was taken to another room which was dark.
“As soon as I set foot inside that room, I was ambushed. A group of men assaulted me, threw me to the ground and placed a hood over my head. They tied me up and handcuffed me, then forced me to lie on the floor of a van.
“Throughout this ordeal, I was subjected to physical abuse, resulting in significant injuries to my back, knee and wrists.
“They then took me to a landing strip about 20 or 25 minutes away, where they forced me to board a private plane.
“Joaquin removed the hood from my head and strapped me into the seat. No one else was on board the plane except Joaquin, the pilot and me.
“The flight lasted between two and three hours, without stops until we arrived in El Paso, Texas. It was there on the runway that the US federal agents took custody of me and them.
“The idea that I surrendered or cooperated voluntarily is completely and wrongly false. I was brought to this country by force and under duress, without my consent and against my will.
“I am aware that the official version being reported by Sinaloa state authorities is that Hector Cuen was shot on the night of July 25 at a gas station by two men riding a motorcycle who wanted to steal his truck. That is not what happened.
“He was killed at the same time, and in the same place, where I was kidnapped. Hector Cuen was a long-time friend of mine, and I deeply regret his death, as well as the disappearance of Jose Rosario Heras Lopez and Rodolfo Chaidez, who no one has seen or heard from since.
“I think it is important that the truth comes out. This is what happened, instead of the false stories that are circulating. There is a call to the governments of Mexico and the United States to be transparent and spread the truth about my kidnapping to the United States and about the deaths of Hector Cuen, Rosario Heras, Rodolfo Chaidez, and anyone else who may have lost their lives that day.
“I also call on the people of Sinaloa to use restraint and maintain peace in our state. Nothing can be solved with violence. We have been down this road before, and everyone loses.”
Ismael ‘El Mayo’ Zambada will face at least 17 charges before the Federal Court of the Eastern District of New York, where ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán and the former federal Secretary of Public Security, Genaro García Luna, have also been tried.
#kidnapped #force #Mayo #Zambada
– 2024-08-13 07:24:13
