A son of Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman has pleaded guilty in a Chicago court to drug trafficking charges as part of a deal that will see him cooperate with US prosecutors in exchange for a reduced sentence.
Joaquin Guzman Lopez, one of four sons of the imprisoned Sinaloa cartel leader, reversed the not guilty plea he entered after his arrest in Texas in July 2024.
Court filings showed he admitted to drug trafficking and engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise.
Under the plea agreement, prosecutors acknowledged that the judge may choose not to impose the mandatory life sentence, depending on Guzman Lopez’s level of cooperation.
He must also pay an $80 million charge representing the proceeds of his crimes.
Another of his brothers, Ovidio Guzman, pleaded guilty in July 2025 to conspiracy and criminal enterprise charges as part of his own agreement with US prosecutors.
Ovidio also admitted that he and his brothers, known collectively as "Los Chapitos," had taken over parts of their father’s cartel operations.
El Chapo’s legacy
"El Chapo", 68, is serving a life sentence at the federal supermax prison in Colorado following his 2016 arrest and 2019 conviction.
In the plea filing, prosecutors said Guzman Lopez had "clearly demonstrated" acceptance of responsibility.
He was involved in the shipment of "hundreds or thousands of kilograms" of cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine and marijuana from Mexico to the United States, according to the court document.
He was arrested in July 2024 after arriving in Texas aboard a private plane with Sinaloa cartel co-founder Ismael "Mayo" Zambada.
Washington accuses the Sinaloa cartel of trafficking fentanyl into the United States, where the synthetic opioid has caused tens of thousands of overdose deaths.
President Donald Trump has designated the cartel as a global terrorist organisation and announced additional sanctions against "Los Chapitos" in June, raising the reward for each fugitive brother to $10 million.
Two of the Guzman brothers — Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar and Jesus Alfredo Guzman Salazar — remain at large.
