Mexico agrees to extradite 'El Chapo' Guzman to the US

Thomson Reuters

Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman is escorted by soldiers during a presentation at the hangar belonging to the office of the Attorney General in Mexico City

The Mexican government announced on Friday that it had approved the extradition of Sinaloa cartel chief Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, which had been requested by the US government last year.

According to the Mexican Foreign Ministry's announcement, Guzmán was notified that Mexico had agreed to the request for him to be processed before the federal district court for western Texas on charges of criminal association, organized crime, weapons possession, homicide, and money laundering.

He will also face charges of conspiracy to import and distribute cocaine in the federal district court for the Southern District of California.

The US has guaranteed that Guzmán will not face the death penalty, the ministry told Bloomberg in an email.

Guzmán is currently jailed in a Mexican federal prison just outside of Ciudad Juarez, only miles from El Paso, Texas, in western Texas.

He was moved without notice early this month, and his relocation was followed quickly by two Mexican judges signing off on the legal proceedings involved in his extradition.

Reuters

"El Chapo" Guzmán, shown in Mexican custody after his arrest in 2014.

Their rulings sent the extradition request to the foreign ministry for approval, though many doubted that it would sign off so soon. Guzmán's attorney's are still able to present injunctions that could slow or halt his extradition.

While the Mexican government's announcement names southern California and west Texas' district courts as where he will face charges, the Sinaloa kingpin has also been charged in numerous other US courts, including district courts in New York and Florida.