Additional Coverage:
Osiel Cárdenas Guillén, the former leader of the notorious Los Zetas drug cartel, has been returned to Mexico after serving a prison sentence in the United States.
Guillén led Los Zetas until 2003, establishing the group as one of the most violent and feared in Mexico’s drug wars. He recruited members of elite special forces as hitmen, using brutal tactics to terrorize the northeastern region.
In 2003, Mexican authorities apprehended Guillén in a bloody gun battle. He was later extradited to the US in 2007 and sentenced to 25 years in prison for drug trafficking and threats against federal agents.
Guillén was released from prison in 2024 and deported to Mexico. He faces multiple charges, including murder and organized crime, and could face over 700 years in prison if convicted.