The US judiciary on Tuesday condemned the Mexican drug trafficker, El Chapo, as a victory for US authorities. Such a sentence would result in a non-negotiable sentence of life imprisonment for the accused.
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A convicted New Mexico drug trafficker, Joaquin Gusman, a 61-year-old El Chapo, was found guilty on Tuesday of charges against him. The decision is a victory for the US authorities after a month-long trial that exposed cartel violence and corruption.
The 12 jurors at the federal court of California, El Chabo, the most prominent Mexican drug cartels, have condemned the 10 charges against him, the most important being the powerful Sinaloa cartel, which is responsible for exporting hundreds of tons of cocaine and other drugs to the United States between 1989 and 2014.
Under US law, this sentence would result in a non-negotiable sentence of life imprisonment for El Chapo, handed over by the Mexican authorities to the United States in January 2017 following two spectacular escapes in Mexico. The punishment is expected to be set for June 25.
El Chabo, dressed in gray and a white shirt, looked at his wife, Emma Coronel, who took part in most of the trial, and then put his hand on his heart. His wife, a former Mexican beauty queen, sent a kiss in the air to El Chapo.
El Chabo´s defense agents hastened to announce their intention to challenge the verdict. Bill Burbora, one of the lawyers, said his client "never gives up under any circumstances."
Victory for the American judiciary
US government officials, who failed to fulfill their demand, handed over Colombian Pablo Escobar, who died in a police operation in Medellin in 1993, to the verdict after a costly international campaign that lasted years.
Acting Justice Minister Matthew Whitaker said the case showed "the amazing radiation of the US government and our determination and determination to pursue cartel leaders."
"The trial" lit up international drug trafficking more than any previous trial, "said Richard Donoghue, a federal prosecutor in Brooklyn." They also revealed that they were able to work because of rampant corruption, which is unacceptable and must stop. "
The US judiciary has insisted on showing the tactics of Latin American drug cartels that have been drowning the United States in interdictions since the 1980s.
But the Sinaloa cartel, named after the state of El Chabo in northwestern Mexico, has not breathed its last breath. Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, who co-leads the gang, is still in hiding, prompting El Chapo´s defense team to describe the trial As a "farce".
"The war on drugs is a terrible failure" and "El Chabo´s conviction - will not change anything," Eduardo Balarezio, a lawyer for El Chapo, chanted in a twitter tweet.
