Abel Barajas/ Reform Agency
Sunday, January 08, 2023 | 10:40
CDMX.– The defense of Ovidio Guzmán López, “El Ratón”, assured that he is not aware that there is an arrest warrant against his client, for crimes committed in Mexico.
When leaving the Almoloya de Juárez Federal Criminal Justice Center, in the Altiplano prison, the lawyer Alberto Díaz Mendieta commented that at the moment he cannot say whether the son of Joaquín Guzmán Loera, El Chapo, will agree to extradition, that is, , if you will give up your legal defense to go to the United States.
“Is there interest in agreeing to extradition?” He was asked in an interview last Friday.
“No, it’s just that you can’t talk about a strategy or anything until the government that requires it presents the formal request, this is just a provisional one,” he replied.
“Don’t you have an arrest warrant pending before the Mexican justice system?” Díaz Mendieta was asked.
“No, that I know of,” he maintained.
“Does your client already have a law firm contracted in the United States?”, he was insisted.
“No, not yet,” he said.
In October 2019, after the “Culiacanazo”, the then Secretary of Security, Alfonso Durazo, said that at that time there were no criminal charges against Guzmán López before the Mexican justice system.
Regarding the evidence that the United States claims to have to try Guzmán Loera’s son, including conversations in Blackberry chats, the litigant replied that he would not comment either until he heard the formal extradition request, the deadline for delivery to the judge expires on 5 next March.
“It is that the facts and the charges cannot be brought forward until the government of the (United States) of America presents the formal petition. This was an informative hearing,” he said.
Five years ago, Díaz Mendieta was a lawyer for Víctor Manuel Félix Beltrán, “El Vic”, the alleged financial operator of the children of El Chapo, who escaped on January 29, 2020 from the South Prison.
To date, “El Vic” has not been recaptured.
According to the San Luis Potosi press, last year this lawyer was also appointed as the legal representative of Mónica Rangel, former Morena candidate for Governor, who pleaded guilty to a fraud of 22 million pesos and was released after a month. of seclusion.
