MEXICO CITY (AP) — The mother of convicted drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman has died in the northern state of Sinaloa, a federal official said Monday.
The official was not authorized to speak on the record, but President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador acknowledged her death and offered his “respect” to the family.
Often criticized for his frequent trips — about five so far — to the drug lord’s home township of Badiraguato, Sinaloa, Lopez Obrador added in his daily briefing that “any human being who dies deserves respect and consideration for their family.”
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Local media reported Loera died at a private hospital in Culiacan, Sinaloa, which is home to the cartel of the same name that her son helped to lead for about two decades before his arrest and extradition to the United States in 2017. The hospital declined to comment when contacted by The Associated Press.
Loera reportedly led a quiet life, in addition to common religious activities, but rose to prominence after shaking hands with López Obrador at an impromptu meeting at his stopover in Badiraguato in 2020. He also won the president’s help for his 2019 visa application. son, who is serving a life sentence in the United States.
Lopez Obrador said he helped her “like any mother asking me for support for her son.”
In a March 2020 letter, Loera wrote that he was 92 at the time, which would have raised his current age to 95. In the letter, she insisted that her son be returned to Mexico to serve his sentence.
Lopez Obrador has been largely unwilling to speak ill of Mexico’s drug lords and their families, saying they “may have been forced to take the wrong path of anti-social activities because of a lack of opportunities” but were deserving of consideration and respect.
The head of Mexico’s state news agency, Jenaro Villamil, described Loera as “an undeniable woman from Sinaloa” who has publicly denied that her son runs Mexico’s toughest drug cartel.
Guzman led the Sinaloa cartel in bloody drug turf battles that claimed the lives of thousands of Mexicans. He escaped twice from Mexican prisons, one time through a mile-long tunnel running from his cell.
After his extradition to New York, his three-month trial focused on gruesome murders, political bribes, cocaine hidden in jalapeno cans, and jewel-encrusted weapons. He was convicted of running an industrial-scale smuggling operation and is lately serving a life sentence at a maximum-security criminal in Colorado.
Earlier this year, Mexico extradited one of the sons of drug lord Ovidio Guzman Lopez to the United States to face drug trafficking, money laundering and other charges. He is believed to have led the Sinaloa cartel’s efforts to produce and export fentanyl to the United States. , where he is blamed for about 70,000 overdose deaths a year.
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