Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada has requested to be repatriated to Mexico, claiming that his detention in the United States was illegal. In a letter dated February 20, Zambada expressed the need for Mexico's intervention to leave the U.S. prison, where he claims to have been handed over against his will by the Chapitos in an operation allegedly coordinated with U.S. authorities.
In response to this request, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico has expressed its intention to interview El Mayo Zambada through the Consulate and provide him with consular assistance. His lawyers have indicated that Zambada does not intend to cooperate with U.S. authorities or implicate politicians in drug trafficking but is willing to plead guilty to avoid trial.
Efforts to conduct these interviews are already underway by Mexican authorities. The SRE has confirmed that it is closely monitoring Zambada's defense petition through his lawyers, ensuring consular assistance to Mexican citizens detained abroad according to the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations and applicable national legislation.
On the other hand, the Attorney General's Office of the Republic revealed that it has requested the extradition of Ismael El Mayo Zambada to the United States on four occasions, describing his arrest on U.S. soil as kidnapping. According to the head of the FGR, Alejandro Gertz Manero, the lack of response from the U.S. to these requests has been notable, and they consider Zambada's detention to be the result of kidnapping due to the intervention of Joaquín Guzmán López, son of Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán.
The FGR has stated that evidence of crimes committed in Mexico, such as kidnapping and illegal transportation against Zambada's will, has been presented, initiating an extradition procedure following his capture in 2024.
