In a major blow to the Sinaloa drug cartel, Ismael Zambada Garcia and Joaquin Guzman Lopez were detained after landing in El Paso on a private plane.

Mexican drug lord Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada Garcia and the son of his former partner, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, have been arrested in El Paso, Texas, in a major coup for United States law enforcement that may also reshape the Mexican criminal landscape.

Zambada Garcia, who is believed to be in his 70s, and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, who is in his 30s, were detained after landing in a private plane in El Paso, two US officials told the Reuters news agency.

“The Justice Department has taken into custody two additional alleged leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the most violent and powerful drug trafficking organisations in the world,” the US Department of Justice said on Thursday.

Known by this underworld name El Mayo, Zambada Garcia is alleged to be one of the most consequential drug traffickers in Mexico’s history. He co-founded the Sinaloa cartel with El Chapo, who was extradited to the US in 2017 and is serving a life sentence in a maximum security prison.

Zambada Garcia and the younger Guzman face multiple charges in the US for allegedly funnelling huge quantities of drugs to the US, including fentanyl, which has surged in use to become the leading cause of death for Americans between the ages of 18 and 45.

Guzman Lopez is one of four sons of El Chapo – known collectively as Los Chapitos – who inherited their father’s faction of the Sinaloa cartel. His brother, Ovidio Guzman, was arrested last year and extradited to the US.

The US Justice Department had been offering $15m for information leading to the capture of Zambada Garcia, who US law enforcement claims became the Sinaloa cartel’s “unquestioned senior leader” following El Chapo’s arrest.

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland Statement on Arrests of Alleged Leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel Ismael Zambada Garcia (El Mayo) and Joaquin Guzman Lopez

🔗: https://t.co/LumvDMKx2F pic.twitter.com/Wcm20MLrhC

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— U.S. Department of Justice (@TheJusticeDept) July 26, 2024

El Mayo and El Chapo’s sons: Two different styles

Zambada Garcia and Guzman Lopez face multiple charges “for heading the Cartel’s criminal operations, including its deadly fentanyl manufacturing and trafficking networks”, US Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

“We will not rest until every single cartel leader, member, and associate responsible for poisoning our communities is held accountable,” Garland said.

The Sinaloa cartel traffics drugs to more than 50 countries around the globe and is one of two most powerful organised crime groups in Mexico, according to US authorities.

But Zambada Garcia and El Chapo’s sons belong to two different generations of drug traffickers, with differing styles.

Zambada Garcia is known for being “old-school”, avoiding the limelight and operating in the shadows. El Chapo’s sons, by contrast, have a reputation for being flashy drug traffickers who courted attention as they ascended the ranks of the cartel.

El Chapo’s sons are also known to be more violent and hot-headed than Zambada Garcia, who had a reputation as a shrewd operator.

Previous arrests of important Mexican cartel leaders have triggered violence as power vacuums open, leading to significant infighting within criminal organisations and between them and their rival cartels.

Vanda Felbab-Brown, a researcher at Washington’s Brookings Institution who closely monitors Mexican security, said the potential for violence as a result of the arrests “certainly looms very large”.