Crime
Former Gulf Cartel leader Osiel Cárdenas released from U.S. prison after 21 years
The former leader of the Gulf Cartel, who was one of the most wanted bosses in Mexico, was sentenced in 2010 to 25 years in prison in a Texas court
August 30, 2024 4:53pm
Updated: September 2, 2024 11:33pm
Mexican Osiel Cárdenas Guillén, former leader of the Gulf Cartel and founder of the criminal gang Los Zetas, was released this Friday from a prison in Terre Haute, Indiana (USA) after almost 21 years for drug trafficking, as confirmed by the Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) to the EFE Spanish language news agency.
Cárdenas Guillén, who is now 57 years old and faces several accusations in Mexico, has been turned over to the Immigration andCustoms Enforcement Service (ICE), the BOP detailed in its information.
Several media outlets affirm that the convict will not be returned to his Mexican homeland.
Tras ser liberado 🔍, Osiel Cárdenas Guillén permanecerá 🇺🇸 en Estados Unidos; no será deportado a México ❌🇲🇽#OsielCardenasGuillen #CarteldelGolfo #EstadosUnidoshttps://t.co/Ffa9rm65lw
— SDP Noticias (@sdpnoticias) August 30, 2024
The former Gulf Cartel leader, who became one of the most wanted bosses in his native country, was sentenced in 2010 to 25 years in prison in a Texas court.
The drug trafficker had served 75% of his original sentence at the time of his release.
The capo originally pleaded guilty to five charges related to drug trafficking through an agreement with the Prosecutor's Office, which dropped another 12 charges that would have meant a life sentence.
According to the Justice Department’s indictment, the organization, headed by Cárdenas Guillén carried out drug trafficking activities in Houston, Chicago and Atlanta.
Known under the alias “El Mata Amigos” (the Friend Killer) he was arrested in Mexico in 2003 and extradited to the United States in 2007 along with three other Mexican drug traffickers, where he faced the accusation that kept him behind bars until Aug. 30 of this year. He was sentenced in 2010 to 25 years in prison.
“At that time, the Justice Department alleged that Cardenas Guillen threatened to kill a Texas sheriff's deputy who was working as an undercover ICE agent because he refused to deliver almost 1,000 kilograms of marijuana,” CBS News reported.
“After his capture, the Zetas began operating more independently until they finally broke with the Gulf Cartel in 2010, unleashing a war for control of its drug trafficking routes in eastern and northeastern Mexico.”
Osiel Cárdenas Junior, Cárdenas Guillén's son, was sentenced last year to spend more than nine years in prison for weapons smuggling to Mexico.
Like his father, Texas-born Cardenas Junior agreed to plead guilty to attempting to purchase 10 assault rifles to export to Mexico and committing a crime while on probation for another criminal charge.
The brother of the former drug trafficking leader, Mario Cárdenas Guillén, alias “El M1,” was also prosecuted in 2012 for crimes related to cartel activities.
