US denies plan to capture El Mayo: Rosa Icela Rodriguez

According to the official report that Washington sent to the Mexican government on the capture of Ismael El Mayo Zambada and Joaquín Guzmán López, the flight in which they traveled from Mexico to the territory of that country, where they were captured, It was not planned by any US government agency.According to the document, “they had no prior notice of this flight nor confirmation that Guzmán López was traveling on that aircraft,” said the Secretary of Public Security, Rosa Icela Rodríguez.

By releasing the full document sent to them by the Department of Justice in response to the request from the Attorney General’s Office, the U.S. authorities were aware that Guzmán López had considered the possibility of turning himself in, although that intention had never materialized. U.S. law enforcement was informed at approximately 10:30 a.m. on Thursday, July 25, that Joaquín Guzmán López was considering surrendering upon entering U.S. territory on a private flight that day..

At yesterday’s conference, Rodriguez provided the chronology sent to them by the Department of Justice: At approximately 2:35 p.m., law enforcement authorities in the neighboring country were informed that Joaquín Guzmán López was flying to the United States on a plane that had taken off from Mexico and that it was his intention to fly there to surrender..

The US document details Zambada’s situation, stating that the competent authorities learned at 2:40 p.m. that he could also be on board the flight heading to their territory, without having any independent confirmation about.

Later, in the report that Rodriguez read, it is highlighted that The flight from Mexico landed in the United States at the Santa Teresa Airport in New Mexico at approximately 4:24 p.m. This airport is just outside of El Paso, Texas..

Upon arrival at the Santa Teresa airport, the US authorities detained the two passengers on board the aircraft (whose registration number and model were not specified) and once the identity of Zambada and Guzmán López was confirmed, they were notified immediately to the Mexican government, through the embassy, ​​sending the photographs of the case to the Security Cabinet.

–Did the flight leave Hermosillo or not, as was reported on Friday? If you could clarify that for us, because the pilot has declared in the United States, in the media, that it was not this flight, that there was a mistake, an error on the part of Mexico.

–Indeed, as I said before, it is part of the investigations that the Attorney General’s Office is carrying out. It will take into account all the entities or airports, personnel who have been, let’s say, witnesses in this case; that is part of the investigations of the FGR.

–So it has not yet been ruled out that this flight from Hermosillo is the case?

–Let’s wait to see what the Attorney General’s Office says.

–The identity of the pilot?

–It is also part of the investigations that the Attorney General’s Office is already carrying out. We are also expecting more information from the United States authorities on these questions that you are asking about the flight, the route, all of that.

The secretary said that there is still a lack of information that would allow them to have the details of everything that happened, including whether Guzmán López actually surrendered and Zambada’s health status.