Here is Ismael “Mayo” Zambada’s full statement, released today by his attorney Frank Perez… Mayo Zambada sends a message to his son Mayo Flaco telling him not to start a war. ~ Borderland Beat

“Char” for Borderland Beat

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AUGUST 10, 2024

STATEMENT OF ISMAEL ZAMBADA GARCÍA

Since I was flown to the United States from Mexico on July 25, 2024, there has been much inaccurate reporting in the media in both countries. In this statement, I will provide the true facts of what happened that day. I want to state up front that I did not surrender or come to the United States voluntarily. Nor did I have an agreement with either government. Rather, I was kidnapped and brought to the United States by force and against my will. The details of how this happened are as follows.

Joaquín Guzmán López asked me to attend a meeting to help resolve differences between the political leaders of our state. I was aware of an ongoing dispute between Rubén Rocha Moya, the governor of Sinaloa, and Héctor Melesio Cuen Ojeda, a former member of the federal congress, mayor of Culiacan and rector of the Universidad Autónoma de Sinaloa (UAS), over who should lead that institution. I was told that in addition to Hector Cuen and Governor Rocha Moya, Iván Guzmán Salazar would also be present at the meeting.

On July 25, I went to the ranch and event center called Huertos del Pedregal, just outside Culiacán, where the meeting was to be held. The meeting was scheduled for 11 a.m., and I arrived a little early. I saw a large number of armed men in green military uniforms who I assumed were gunmen in the service of Joaquín Guzmán and his brothers. I was accompanied by four security officers, two of whom remained outside the perimeter. The two who entered with me were José Rosario Heras López, a commander of the Sinaloa state judicial police, and Rodolfo Chaidez, a longtime member of my security team.

As I walked toward the meeting room, I saw Héctor Cuen and one of his assistants. I greeted them briefly before heading to a room with a table full of fruit. I saw Joaquín Guzmán Lopez, whom I have known since he was a little boy, and he motioned for me to follow him. Confident in the nature of the meeting and the people involved, I followed him without hesitation. I was led to another room that was dark.

The moment I stepped foot in that room, I was ambushed. A group of men assaulted me, threw me to the ground, and put a dark hood over my head. They tied me up and handcuffed me, then forced me into the back of a pickup truck. Throughout the ordeal, I was subjected to physical abuse, resulting in serious injuries to my back, knees, and wrists. I was then driven to an airstrip about 20 to 25 minutes away, where I was forced to board a private plane.

Joaquin took off my hood and strapped me to the seat with zip ties. There was no one else on the plane except Joaquin, the pilot, and myself.

The flight took between 2 1/2 and 3 hours non-stop until we arrived in El Paso, Texas. It was there, on the tarmac, that I was taken into custody by U.S. federal agents. The idea that I surrendered or cooperated voluntarily is completely and unequivocally false. I was brought to this country by force and duress, without my consent and against my will.

I know that the official version of the Sinaloa state authorities is that Héctor Cuen was shot dead on the evening of July 25 at a gas station by two men on a motorcycle who wanted to steal his van. That is not what happened. He was killed at the same time and place where I was kidnapped. Héctor Cuen was a long-time friend and I deeply regret his death as well as the disappearance of José Rosario Heras López and Rodolfo Chaidez, of whom no one has heard since.

I believe it is important that the truth be revealed. This is what happened, not the false stories that are circulating. I call on the governments of Mexico and the United States to be transparent and tell the truth to the United States about my kidnapping and the deaths of Héctor Cuen, Rosario Heras, Rodolfo Chaidez and all those who may have lost their lives that day. I also call on the people of Sinaloa to exercise restraint and maintain peace in our state. Nothing can be solved through violence. We have been down this path before and everyone loses.

– Ismael Mayo Zambada