Mexico’s security chief confirms 17 of Ovidio Guzmán’s relatives have left for the US

Mexico’s Secretary of Security and Citizen Protection, Omar García Harfuch, confirmed Tuesday that 17 relatives of Ovidio Guzmán have left for the United States as part of a negotiation process between the alleged drug trafficker and the U.S. government. Photos of Guzmán’s mother and other family members at U.S. border crossings on Monday had sparked public concern, especially after it was revealed last week that Ovidio has agreed to plead guilty to charges he faces north of the border.

“This is an agreement between a defendant and the authorities,” Harfuch told journalist Ciro Gómez Leyva during a radio interview. “First, it should be noted that Ovidio was detained by Mexican authorities, where fellow Army and Special Forces members were even killed. Then, Mexico extradited him to the U.S. And then, as we saw on the news, negotiations began with the Department of Justice. It’s clear that if his family is leaving now, it’s because of this negotiation.”

“It’s clear that this is what’s happening, and U.S. authorities were already waiting for them,” Harfuch added.

His remarks contrast with the official silence from Mexico’s government. Neither Mexico’s Attorney General’s Office, President Claudia Sheinbaum, nor any other federal agency has publicly addressed the situation. While they are not legally obligated to do so, given the Guzmán family’s prominence in Mexico’s criminal landscape and the efforts made to capture Ovidio, public clarification seems warranted.

“The family that fled was not a target of the Mexican authorities,” Harfuch explained. “But of course the Department of Justice must share information with the Attorney General’s Office, for one main reason: Ovidio was arrested by Mexican authorities.”

Among those who traveled to the U.S. is Ovidio’s mother, Griselda López, a former partner of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, the historic leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, who is now serving a life sentence in the U.S.

Ovidio Guzmán is one of two of El Chapo’s sons in U.S. custody. The other, Joaquín Guzmán López, surrendered in July in Texas in what many view as a betrayal. He reportedly lured cartel boss Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada to a meeting in Sinaloa under false pretenses, only to have him kidnapped and handed over to U.S. authorities. That alleged betrayal sparked an ongoing war between the Guzmán brothers and Zambada’s sons.

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