El Mayo Zambada Arrested in U.S. Operation

Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada, a co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel, was arrested in the U.S. after being tricked into boarding a plane under false pretenses by Joaquín Guzmán López, the son of the infamous Joaquín 'El Chapo' Guzmán. Believing he was headed to view property in Mexico, Zambada, 76, was instead flown to El Paso, Texas, where he was taken into custody by U.S. law enforcement. Zambada has entered a not guilty plea to multiple drug trafficking charges. His capture represents a significant blow to the Sinaloa Cartel, which has been responsible for a large portion of the fentanyl trafficking crisis in the U.S. U.S. officials had previously offered a reward of up to $15 million for information leading to Zambada's arrest. The incident highlights ongoing tensions within the cartel and the lengths to which its members might go to secure power and evade law enforcement.