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Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum stated on Tuesday that her government will seek to recover for the country any assets the United States manages to seize from drug trafficker Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada, following the life sentence handed down by the U.S. justice system and the forfeiture order for $15 billion.
"If there is a seizure of assets from any drug trafficker or white-collar criminal who is in the United States, we are going to request that (the confiscated property) be turned over to Mexico within the framework of the law, because the primary damage was caused here and it is what is determined within the framework of collaborative laws," the president expressed during her morning press conference.
When asked if her government would request a portion of what was confiscated from the drug trafficker, the leader pointed out that, whenever there are assets or resources effectively seized, Mexico will request that they be turned over to the State, in accordance with bilateral cooperation mechanisms.
"In all those cases it is requested, if there is a seizure, that it be handed over," she noted.
Sheinbaum maintained that resources recovered from illicit activities should benefit the Mexican population.
"Everything that is beneficial to the people of Mexico. That is our role and our task.
Last July, a federal judge in New York sentenced the 76-year-old Zambada to life in prison after he pleaded guilty to charges related to cocaine and fentanyl trafficking.
The sentence did not include a financial penalty, but it did order the forfeiture of $15 billion, an amount requested by the U.S. Attorney's Office as an estimate of the profits earned by the drug trafficker during decades of criminal activity.
However, Sheinbaum clarified that this figure does not represent assets that have already been located or seized, but rather an estimate made by U.S. authorities regarding the illicit profits attributed to the co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel.
“It is an estimate of the damage that Mayo Zambada may have caused during the entire period he operated as a criminal, which was part of drug trafficking,” she emphasized.
Before hearing the verdict, Zambada read a letter in which he asked for forgiveness from the victims of his acts, called for an end to the violence in Mexico, and asserted that he assumed responsibility for his crimes. EFE
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