Mexico considers treason charges for anyone who helped hand over drug lord
Prosecutors in Mexico are considering criminal charges for anyone who helped hand over the drug lord Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada to the United States. In July, the Justice Department arrested Joaquin Guzman Lopez — Sinaloa cartel co-founder and El Chapo’s son — and Zambada after their plane landed at a small airport in New Mexico.
Guzman and Zambada are both leaders of the Mexican Sinaloa drug cartel. Guzman allegedly wanted to turn himself in, while Zambada said he was taken against his will.
The charges include “illegal flight, illicit use of airports, immigration and customs violations, kidnapping, treason and any other crimes that may apply.”
In Mexico, there’s an added meaning to its treason statute, it includes anyone who “illegally abducts a person in Mexico in order to hand them over to authorities of another country.”
According to the AP, that clause was added after someone kidnapped a doctor who was responsible for the torture and killing of a DEA agent in 1985, handing him over the to the United States.
Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador agreed with the decision to open a criminal investigation into Zambada’s arrest.
“[Zambada’s arrest] could have been an operation of the U.S. Department of Justice, and they must provide an explanation because we will find out anyway,” Lopez Obrador said at a press conference.
President Lopez Obrador has previously said he opposes U.S. intervention in Mexico. He also said the arrest could be part of a plot to smear him. This is the same president who has a “hugs not bullets” policy for fighting drug cartels.
“Why don’t they change that policy in the United States,” Lopez Obrador questioned. “Why do they think that arresting one famous drug lord — or two, or three or ten — is going to solve their [drug abuse] problem?”
Mexico’s president and Mexican prosecutors are expressing their disapproval of the operation after Zambada’s lawyer released a letter the drug lord wrote from prison that stated he was ambushed, kidnapped and taken to the United States against his will.
Those are serious accusations coming from a man who had a $15 million bounty on his head and faces murder, kidnapping and trafficking charges.
Zambada has already made two court appearances in the United States, he’s scheduled to make a third on Sept. 9. He’s being held without bond.
US arrests Mexican drug cartel leaders ‘El Mayo’ and ‘El Chapo’s’ son
U.S. authorities said they’ve arrested a Mexican drug cartel kingpin who’s evaded capture for decades. Federal agents lured Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada across the border into Texas, where they took him into custody on Thursday, July 25.
“El Mayo” is described as the leader of the powerful Sinaloa cartel, which authorities said has been flooding the U.S. with deadly fentanyl.
Joaquin Guzman Lopez, the son of the cartel’s infamous co-founder and former boss Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, was also arrested. “El Chapo” is currently serving a life sentence in a U.S. prison.
The two were arrested in El Paso and face multiple drug charges. Zambada is believed to be in his 70s and Guzman Lopez is in his 30s.
Arson attacks disrupt train travel ahead of Paris Olympics opening ceremony
With just hours to go before the Olympics opening ceremony, arson attacks disrupted traffic on France’s high-speed train lines. And following a Supreme Court ruling banning sleeping in public spaces, California Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order to remove homeless encampments. These stories and more highlight The Morning Rundown for Friday, July 26, 2024.
Arson attacks disrupt train travel ahead of Paris Olympics opening ceremony
Authorities are investigating what’s being called “a malicious attack” on France’s high-speed rail network. According to authorities, arsonists set a series of coordinated fires to disrupt travel just ahead of the Paris Olympics opening ceremony.
It’s already causing delays and is expected to “severely impact” commuters until at least the end of Sunday, July 28. The railway operator said the fires were deliberately set to damage its installations.
This incident is likely to add some apprehension ahead of the much-anticipated Paris Olympic Games.
France has beefed up its security surrounding the world event in unprecedented levels. There will be more than 45,000 police, 10,000 soldiers and 2,000 security agents deployed, as well as several snipers and drones keeping watch from above as the games officially get underway.
Officials: Man pushing burning car into gully started California wildfire
Wildfires are raging in the west and the impact of the wildfire smoke is being felt as far as the East Coast. It’s California’s largest wildfire of the year, dubbed “The Park Fire,” burning north of Sacramento near the city Chico.
Authorities said they know how it started and have a suspect in custody. They said 48-year-old Ronnie Dean Stout II of Chico, California, pushed a burning car into a dry gully just before 3 p.m. local time on Wednesday, July 24. He has been arrested on suspicion of arson.
The Park Fire is larger than the size of the city of Atlanta and is only 3% contained.
It’s also not the only fire consuming the time and energy of firefighters and officials. Hundreds of wildfires are spreading throughout California, Oregon and Canada, forcing thousands of evacuations.
In Oregon, fires have been ablaze for days, burning nearly 1 million acres.
The impact of wildfire smoke across the nation is expected to worsen throughout the weekend.
California governor issues executive order to remove homeless encampments
The order offers guidance on how to remove the encampments in a humane way. It also makes it clear the decision to remove encampments is up to individual cities.
California has the largest unhoused population in the country, with more than 180,000 people experiencing homelessness.
U.S. arrests Mexican drug cartel leaders “El Mayo” and “El Chapo’s” son
U.S. authorities said they’ve arrested a Mexican drug kingpin who’s evaded capture for decades. Federal agents lured Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada across the border into Texas, where they took him into custody.
“El Mayo” is described as the leader of the powerful Sinaloa cartel, which authorities said has been flooding the U.S. with deadly fentanyl.
Joaquin Guzman Lopez, the son of the cartel’s infamous co-founder and former boss Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, was also arrested. “El Chapo” is currently serving a life sentence in a U.S. prison.
Harvey Weinstein hospitalized with COVID-19 and double pneumonia
Former Hollywood movie mogul Harvey Weinstein — who’s been sentenced to 16 years in prison after being found guilty of rape — has been hospitalized. His representative said Weinstein is facing a “myriad of health conditions,” including COVID-19 and double pneumonia.
The 72 year old is currently awaiting retrial in Manhattan on sex crime charges after his conviction was overturned on appeal in April. He is tentatively set to be retried in November.
His rape sentence comes out of a conviction in Los Angeles, but he’s being held in a New York prison while waiting for retrial.
Ohio court rules ‘boneless’ chicken wings can have bones
According to the Ohio State Supreme court, customers who order boneless wings should not expect them to be boneless. The ruling stems from a case brought on by a man who said he developed medical problems after a tiny bone fragment became lodged in his throat after he ate boneless wings at a restaurant in 2016.
He sued the restaurant for negligence and breach of warranty. However, the Ohio justices ruled that the term “boneless wings” actually refers to the cooking style and said in its ruling that it’s “common knowledge that chickens have bones.”
American canoeist Casey Eichfeld looks for gold at historic 4th Olympics
This is the fifth installment in our weeklong series taking a closer look at Team USA members and their sports as the Paris Olympics get underway.
Casey Eichfeld is many things: a husband, father, Olympian and a self-described Disney fanatic.
“We got married at Disney World in Epcot,” he told Straight Arrow News, confirming he and his wife’s Disney devotion.
Straight Arrow News asked him to explain the rules of the sport. He gave a concise explanation:
“Canoe slalom is a series of gates hanging over a whitewater river. Athletes have to navigate those gates and there will be 18 to 25 of them. Fastest time wins. If we touch a gate we incur a 2-second penalty. If we miss a gate, go through it upside down or the wrong direction, we get a 50-second penalty. And that’s really about it.”
But that’s far from it when we’re talking about Eichfeld who will be making history in his sport for most Olympic appearances. He was, in a way, born for canoeing.
“My parents had a boat waiting for me before I was born so I don’t know if I was really given that much choice,” Eichfeld said with a laugh.
So once he started he said everything clicked — a perfect fit like Cinderella’s glass slipper — and he fell in love with the sport.
In 2008, he qualified for his first Olympics in Beijing at 18 years old. It was an experience he called “super surreal,” especially being part of the opening ceremony.
“That’s one of the memories that will stay with me all of my life, particularly my first opening ceremonies,” Eichfeld said. “There’s 550 of us, we’re walking through the tunnel into the bird’s nest and everyone’s chanting ‘USA!’ ‘USA!’ It gives me chills every time I think about it.”
Eichfeld said it’s not just the memories on the water that stick with him. He said he has plenty of other stories to share.
“I have a memory of hanging out at our athlete’s lounge in our village building, chilling out, watching other sports — Michael Phelps walks in,” Eichfeld recalled. “He’s like, ‘Hey are there any Uncrustables left?’ I said, ‘Dude, I got you.’ I took him right to the fridge that had them, had a coffee together, chatted a little bit. “‘It’s cool to see you. I’m not at all starstruck.’”
After placing 7th at the Rio Games in 2016, his highest placement yet, but then not qualifying for Tokyo 2021, Eichfeld contemplated retirement. He was starting a family and wondering if it was time to turn the page on his Olympic quest, but, like Moana, the water called to him.
“I had to make the decision: if I’m going to do this, I’m going to do this,” Eichfeld said. “There’s no messing around with this. If I’m going to take the time to be away from my family, as much as I need to be, then I really need to put the effort in and it paid off.”
At 34 years old, Eichfeld is now the veteran among his Team USA crew. He’s already thinking ahead, not just about his Olympics dreams, but the ones coming true at home, too.
“I’m really happy with my decision [to compete], now I get to make that decision again,” Eichfeld said. “We got a home Olympics coming and we have a baby boy coming at the end of October. So big, big year for me.”
“I like to add big things to my Olympic years. In 2016, my wife and I got married in December and this time, we’re having a baby two months after the Olympics. So why not make it a big year, a really memorable year?”
With his family in Paris motivating him, Eichfeld is looking to bring home the gold this time around and then celebrate in style.
“I want to prove that I belong here and even in my advanced age that I can still throw it down,” Eichfeld said. “So I’m fighting for the podium. I want to be up there. And then when I get home I want to go Disney.”
Sinaloa cartel tells its fentanyl producers to stop making opioid or be killed: report
The Sinaloa cartel is ordering its members to stop fentanyl production and trafficking in response to increasing U.S. pressure. Non-compliance with this directive carries grave consequences, including abduction or death, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.
Led by El Chapo’s sons, the Sinaloa cartel issued this order to ease U.S. authorities’ ongoing scrutiny. They appear resolute in enforcing their threats.
Prosecutors revealed in a recent indictment that while Sinaloa cartel boss Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán serves a life sentence, his sons have steered the family business into fentanyl, establishing a network of labs churning out massive quantities of the cheap, deadly drug that they smuggle into the U.S. Source: AP Images.
“The Chapitos have to maintain a reputation, so they’re much more violent than their father was, because they have to show other members of the cartel that they have a reputation where they’re going to take violent action if they have to,” said Mike Vigil, former head of the DEA’s international operations.
The Chapitos expect this move to redirect U.S. attention to their main rival, the Jalisco New Generation cartel (CJNG). CJNG is another significant fentanyl producer and distributor. Both cartels have long been on the radar of U.S. authorities.
“We know who is responsible. The Sinaloa Cartel and the Jalisco (CJNG) Cartel, both cartels in Mexico, are responsible for the vast majority of fentanyl that is coming into the U.S.,” DEA Administrator Anne Milgram said.
Despite this move by the Chapitos, U.S. officials remain skeptical about its lasting impact. One official even stated: “In the aggregate, it won’t mean anything.”
Fentanyl continues to drive a growing public health crisis. This highly potent synthetic opioid is a deadly threat. There are over 100,000 overdose deaths in the United States each year, and nearly two-thirds of them are linked to fentanyl.
Mexico extradited Guzman Lopez, a son of former Sinaloa cartel leader Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán, to the United States on Friday, Sept. 15, 2023, to face drug trafficking charges, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement. Source: AP Images.
Washington has already taken notice of this crisis. This year, Mexican security forces apprehended a leader of the Chapitos and extradited him to the United States. Additionally, in October, the Biden administration announced a series of indictments against eight Chinese companies accused of importing the chemicals used in fentanyl production.
“And we know that this global fentanyl supply chain, which ends with the deaths of Americans, often starts with chemical companies in China,” U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said.
To date, U.S. Customs and Border Patrol has seized more than 25,000 pounds of fentanyl for the fiscal year 2023, a 10,000-pound increase from the previous year.
DOJ indicts Sinaloa drug lords who fed victims to tigers, offers $56M for info
The Justice Department indicted leaders of the Sinaloa drug cartel who are accused of murder, torture, and other heinous crimes including feeding people both dead and alive to tigers. Those charged include sons of Joaquin Guzman Loera, better known as El Chapo, who is now serving a life sentence at a maximum security prison in Colorado.
“The Justice Department is announcing significant enforcement actions against the largest, most violent, and most prolific fentanyl trafficking operation in the world. That operation is run by the Sinaloa Cartel and fueled by Chinese precursor chemical and pharmaceutical companies,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said when making the announcement.
The nearly 30 defendants have been charged with fentanyl trafficking, weapons and money laundering, witness tampering and other crimes. The indictments target everyone involved in the fentanyl supply chain, from people making precursor chemicals in China, to manufacturers in Mexico, to those who distribute the final product.
El Chapo’s sons and other leaders of the cartel, known as “Chapitos” were the biggest targets of the indictments. They are accused of taking over the Sinaloa cartel using violence and threats after El Chapo’s extradition to the United States in 2017. They are accused of using aircraft, submarines, tunnels and just about every means of transportation there is to maintain their drug distribution network.
“Each of the nearly 30 defendants in these cases represent part of the machine that is pumping poisonous fentanyl into cities and towns across our country,” Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said. “We won’t grind the cartel machine to a halt unless we attack it from every angle. And to do that, we need to use every tool we can and join forces with partners around our government and around the globe.”
The Justice Department is seeking to extradite eight defendants who are already in custody in other countries. Many are still on the loose. The State Department is offering $56 million in rewards for information that leads to their arrest or conviction. The Treasury Department also levied sanctions against two Chinese companies and five individuals for the sale of precursor chemicals in China to the Sinaloa cartel. It’s all part of a nearly whole of government effort to end a fentanyl crisis that killed 107,735 from August 2021 to August 2022.
Morning rundown: Damar Hamlin on the mend, Jan. 6 anniversary
Damar Hamlin continues his remarkable recovery; the U.S. House is still voting on a speaker; and President Joe Biden is set to speak on the Jan. 6 anniversary. These stories and more highlight the morning rundown for Friday, Jan. 6, 2023.
Bills-Bengals game won’t resume after Damar Hamlin injury
Damar Hamlin gave the nation a scare at the beginning of this week. He collapsed on the field during Monday night’s football game.
Now that the league knows Hamlin is on the mend, a decision to cancel the Bills and Bengals match came down Thursday evening.
The match-up will not be resumed. Both teams have already clinched play-off berths.
The greatest difference this makes is where postseason play will take place. The AFC championship game could be played at a neutral site. Or home field advantage could be decided by a coin toss. It depends on the different scenarios in seeding.
House continues vote for speaker
After a third day of voting and 11 rounds of votes cast, the U.S. House has again failed to elect a speaker. This is something unseen in the chamber since before the Civil War.
On Friday, House members will come to the floor once again. Concessions have been made within the GOP. But whether or not it will be enough still remains unknown, as 20 Republicans continue to vote against congressman Kevin McCarthy.
Biden to speak on Jan. 6 anniversary
Today marks the second anniversary since the Capitol was breached on Jan. 6, 2021.
The events that followed the last presidential election resulted in the largest investigation ever conducted by the U.S. Justice Department.
So far, 900 arrests have been made with the potential of hundreds more.
Today President Biden will speak from the White House, hold a moment of silence, and present a “citizens medal” to 12 people involved in defending the Capitol.
At the center of the stage, two years ago, was President Donald Trump. Since then he has been met with legal recourse.
Trump sued in police officer’s death
The partner of officer Brian Sicknick filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Trump. He died at the Capitol.
Although the officer died of natural causes according to the medical examiner, the lawsuit states his death was a direct consequence of Trump’s rhetoric that day.
A spokesperson for Trump has already refuted the lawsuit.
High-profile arrest leads to unrest
Mexican authorities made a high-profile arrest Thursday. They captured Ovidio Guzman, a son of infamous drug lord El Chapo.
Retaliation from cartels created chaos in the streets. Vehicles were stolen, fires were set to cars and buses, and shots were fired at airplanes. This prompted a local airport to shut down along with schools.
“We advise Americans not to travel to Sinaloa as a result. For those Americans who are in Sinaloa, we strongly encourage them to monitor local news, to follow emergency instructions provided by local authorities,” U.S. State Department spokesperson Ned Price said.
Ovidio Guzman was wanted by the United States. He is an alleged fentanyl drug-trafficker who was captured once before in 2019, but was released because of similar cartel retaliation.
The arrest comes just days before President Biden is set to visit the border on Sunday. He will meet with Mexico’s president to discuss drug trafficking and immigration.
Oldest person in U.S. dies at 115
The oldest person in the United States was Bessie Hendricks at 115 years old. But this week she passed away at her Iowa nursing home.
She celebrated her 115th birthday in November. She was the oldest person in the country and the fourth oldest person in the world.
The teacher and mother of five said her secret to a long life was “hard work.”
Bessie is survived by three of her children. One of her sons said he also has a theory about his mother’s long life, saying she loved to eat sweets.
Morning rundown: House speakership in limbo; Southwest’s apology
Members of the House of Representatives will reconvene Wednesday to try to resolve its speakership election; Southwest offers points as an apology; and a terrifying tale of online dating that went wrong. These stories and more highlight your morning rundown for Wednesday, Jan. 4, 2023.
House to vote again for Speakership
On three separate vote counts, the House of Representatives failed to elect a House speaker. With the GOP in control of the chamber, Congressman Kevin McCarthy, Calif., is the party’s frontrunner.
But with as many as 20 Republicans voting against him, he is not getting enough support to get past the threshold.
However, McCarthy said late Tuesday that there was no scenario in which he drops out of the race for speaker.
“Look, today is it the day I wanted to have? No. I mean there are a lot of things we wanted to do. But if we’re able to work out our differences, and make this time, we’re only going to be stronger to be able to accomplish the things we want to do,” McCarthy said.
More votes will take place again today to see if Republicans can get on the same page. In the meantime, nothing else will get done — no swearing in of new members and no committees will be formed until a speaker is successfully elected.
Southwest offers points as apology
This time last week, Southwest customers were largely stranded in airports, without their luggage, waiting hours on end as thousands of flights were canceled daily.
To make it up to those travelers impacted by the debacle, Southwest is now giving 25,000 reward points, which is the equivalent to about a $300 voucher. The points will likely cover one free round-trip ticket per person.
The reward came with an apology letter from the CEO sent out to impacted customers. Despite the gesture, the White House says it is still investigating the airline.
Cartel kingpin among 27 escapees
A cartel kingpin with ties to El Chapo’s notorious street gang was among 27 inmates who broke out of a Mexican prison following an orchestrated rescue mission.
That rescue mission turned out to be a military-style attack on the prison, killing 17 people, including 10 prison guards.
U.S. Border Patrol says they are “in defense mode,” working with Mexican authorities as the escapees could try to cross into the U.S.
Driver intentionally goes off cliff
Video from helicopter rescue crews show a car at the bottom of a cliff along California’s Interstate 1. Crews say everyone in the Tesla vehicle survived, including two children and two adults.
“We have 300 foot ropes and we just about maxed them out to get down to those people. We come out here unfortunately all too often for things like this. This was nothing short of a miracle today that they survived,” Brian Pottenger, the battalion chief for Cal Fire, said.
While the good news is nobody died, investigators discovered it was the driver’s intention to kill everyone in the car by plunging off the cliff named Devil’s Slide. That driver has been arrested for attempted murder and child abuse.
Bumble date kidnapped for five days
Zachary Mills was arrested and accused of holding a woman captive for five days after they matched on the popular dating app Bumble. The victim agreed to meet Mills at his apartment in Houston.
When the woman turned down his advances, he allegedly started punching, biting and hitting her with a screwdriver. She said he also sexually assaulted her. Court documents also state he deprived her of food and water for the five days she was held captive.
Bumble has guidelines for safe-online dating, which includes meeting in a public space. And have a friend keep tabs on where you’re going.
