Washington has in its hands one of the most trusted operatives of the absolute leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG), and this man could be extradited to Mexico in about 10 years.
Cristian Fernando Gutiérrez Ochoa’s record includes being the son-in-law of Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes, ‘El Mencho,’ head of the CJNG; participating in the kidnapping of Mexican marines to negotiate the release of his mother-in-law and El Mencho’s wife, Rosalinda González; and pleading guilty to money laundering for the cartel in the United States.
A report reveals, however, that the man was a prolific cocaine and methamphetamine trafficker who had the blessing and protection of El Mencho, who even used counterintelligence methods to prevent his arrest.
What is known about the case?
The investigation, initiated by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) office in Los Angeles, California, began in 2012, focusing on drug trafficking and money laundering.
The investigation, which places El Mencho and Abigael González Valencia, alias El Cuini, as the leaders of the powerful CJNG-Cuinis alliance, identified a young man with wavy hair and a beard as a subject of interest. Under the aliases El Guacho or Palomo, Cristian Fernando Gutiérrez Ochoa came to the attention of the anti-narcotics brigade primarily because he was married to or in a relationship with Laisha Oseguera, El Mencho’s daughter and a U.S. citizen.
It was later discovered that Gutiérrez was a trafficker of “industrial” quantities of cocaine and methamphetamine destined for the United States, and that he held a significant leadership position within the Oseguera Cervantes-González Valencia criminal network.
“As part of his duties within the CJNG, Gutiérrez Ochoa was responsible for driving shipments of methamphetamine within Mexico between clandestine laboratories where the drug was produced and safe house locations where the methamphetamine was stored,” the report on El Guacho states.
