Jakarta, CNBC Indonesia – Ten soldiers and 19 criminal suspects have been killed in a massive operation to capture the son of convict drug dealer Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman.
Reported AFP extensionOn Saturday (7/1/2023), the Mexican government said the shutdown was marked by a dramatic shootout that damaged three planes and spread terror at the local airport.
Ovidio Guzman, nicknamed “El Raton” (The Rat), has reportedly helped run his father’s operations since the former Sinaloa Cartel chief was extradited to the United States in 2017.
The 32-year-old man was arrested Thursday in the northwestern city of Culiacan and flown to Mexico City by military plane after six months of intelligence work to track him down.
“Ten members of the army … unfortunately lost their lives in the line of duty,” Defense Minister Luis Cresencio Sandoval told reporters, adding that 19 “offenders” also died in the operation.
Among the dead was a colonel commanding an infantry battalion. His team is attacked after the arrests are made.
Meanwhile, 35 other soldiers sustained gunshot wounds and were taken to hospital, while 21 gunmen were arrested.
Sandoval said a passenger plane about to take off from Culiacan airport, as well as two Mexican Air Force planes, were hit when members of the Sinaloa Cartel launched a heavy attack to rescue their captured leader.
The air force plane “had to make an emergency landing” after receiving “a significant amount of impact,” Sandoval said.
There were no injuries from the airstrike.
Previously, the United States (US) had issued a reward of up to $5 million for information leading to the arrest of Ovid Guzman. He has been accused of being a key player in the notorious Sinaloa Cartel.
Gunfire and arson have rocked Culiacan after Thursday’s arrest, which comes as Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador prepares to welcome his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden next week to a summit of U.S. leaders where security is expected to be in top of the agenda. .
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