Burning vehicles are seen crossed in the street during an operation to arrest the son of Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman, Ovidio Guzman, in Culiacan, Sinaloa state, Mexico, on January 5, 2023. (Photo by Marcos Vizcarra / AFP)
Mexico’s military arrested the son of drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo” Guzman in the state of Sinaloa early Thursday, according to local media.
Blockades, shootings and looting were reported across the city of Culiacan, where the operation to capture him took place, local media reported. Sinaloa’s state government advised residents to stay home amid the violence in a Twitter post.
During his morning news conference, President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said an operation had been carried out in Sinaloa early Thursday, without providing details.
"We still don’t know what the situation is in Sinaloa,” he said then. "We’ll inform you about it later.”
Ovidio Guzman, a Sinaloa Cartel leader and main producer and distributor of fentanyl, was released by the Mexican government after his capture in October 2019 led to widespread violence across Culiacan. AMLO later acknowledged he’d given the order to release him after previously saying he hadn’t been informed of the operation.
Ovidio Guzman is also wanted by the US Department of State for narcotics trafficking. It’s offering up to $5 million for information leading to his arrest or conviction.
