Mexican drug trafficker Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada will plead guilty at a hearing next Monday, US court filings show, raising the prospect of a cooperation deal with prosecutors.
Zambada, who cofounded the Sinaloa Cartel with notorious drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, was arrested in the United States in July 2024 along with Joaquin Guzman Lopez, a son of El Chapo.
Zambada, 77, alleged that he had been kidnapped in Mexico and handed to the US against his will, caught in an apparent attempt by Guzman Lopez to gain leniency for himself and an imprisoned brother.
“The August 25, 2025 status conference isĀ convertedĀ to a change of plea hearing,” said an entry in the court docket updated Monday.
Zambada will avoid a trial because of the plea.
Last September, Zambada pleaded not guilty to 17 charges including murder and drug trafficking, particularly of fentanyl — a powerful narcotic 50 times stronger than cocaine, responsible for tens of thousands of US overdose deaths annually.
In addition to avoiding the dock, an agreement with prosecutors could lead to a lighter sentence than that of El Chapo, who is serving life imprisonment in the United States.
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