Vicente Zambada Niebla

Jesús Vicente Zambada Niebla[9] (born 24 March 1975), also known as "El Vicentillo", is a Mexican convicted drug lord and high-ranking member of the Sinaloa Cartel, a criminal group based in Sinaloa. He is the son of Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, one of Mexico's most-wanted drug lords. He was arrested in Mexico City on 19 March 2009[10] and extradited to the United States in February 2010 to stand trial on narco-trafficking-related charges.[11][12] He was sentenced to 15 years in prison on 30 May 2019. Due to his cooperation in testifying against several members of the Sinaloa Cartel, his conviction term was reduced.[13]

This article uses Spanish naming customs: the first or paternal family name is Zambada and the second or maternal family name is Niebla.
Vicente Zambada Niebla
Born (1975-03-24) 24 March 1975[1]
Culiacán, Sinaloa, Mexico[1]
Other namesEl Vicentillo;[2] Jesus Antonio Domínguez Lopez;[3] Miguel Angel Hernández Peña[3]
OccupationSinaloa Cartel drug lord
EmployerSinaloa Cartel
Known forIllegal drug trafficking
RelativesFather: Ismael Zambada García
Sisters: María Teresa Zambada Niebla and Midiam Patricia Zambada Niebla[4]
Criminal penalty15 years in prison[5][6]
Notes
Extradited to the United States. Rewards: US$2 million offered by the Mexican Government,[7] and the U.S. DEA is offering $5 million.[8]

Charges and plea deal

Zambada was charged with trafficking more than a billion dollars' worth of cocaine and heroin. However, Zambada claims that he is covered by an immunity deal between Mexico and the U.S., and that, because Sinaloa Cartel leaders provided federal agents with information about rival drug gangs, he should go free.[14] As revealed in a 2013 plea bargain deal which was made public by a U.S. District Court in 2014, Zambada admitted coordinating smuggling tons of cocaine and heroin with "El Chapo," Joaquín Guzmán Loera, and agreed to forfeit assets of $1.37 billion to the US government. The plea bargain resulted in a fine of $4 million and 10 years in prison. He is considered a top potential witness against "El Chapo."[15][16][17]

On 8 November 2018, a plea agreement was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Illinois in which Zambada plead guilty to working with El Chapo and others to illegally import into the United States thousands of kilos of cocaine. Zambada and others used private planes, submarines, and speedboats to smuggle the drugs from Colombia to Mexico, and then into the United States. In return for Zambada's cooperation the government recommended more lenient sentencing guidelines and that measures be taken to ensure his family's safety. These included having Zambada and his family be allowed to remain permanently in the United States.[18]

Relationships

Jesús Vicente Zambada Niebla is the son of Ismael Zambada García (alias, "El Mayo"), one of the top leaders of the Sinaloa drug-trafficking organization. He is also the brother of Midiam Patricia Zambada who is also in the Sinaloa Cartel narco business. He was also married and has two children with one of "El Chapo's daughters".[4]

See also

References
  1. No tiene antecedentes penales. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  2. DEA officials deny they promised drug kingpin immunity. Natasha Korecki. 9 September 2011. Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  3. "Secretaría de la Defensa Nacional | Gobierno | gob.mx". Archived from the original on 2010-12-21.
  4. Departamento del Tesoro de Estados Unidos ataca red financiera de Ismael Zambada. NTRzacatecas.com. 22 July 2010. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  5. https://cnnespanol.cnn.com/video/narco-zambada-prision-chicago-chapo-carcel-live-maria-santana-perspectivas-mexico/
  6. https://www.elsoldemexico.com.mx/mundo/condenan-a-vicente-zambada-el-vicentillo-a-15-anos-de-prision-en-eu-3694475.html
  7. Mexico's most wanted traffickers, at $2 million. Associated Press. 23 March 2009. Retrieved 30 March 2009.
  8. Diana Washington Valdez. The Killing Fields: Harvest of Women Peace at the Border. 2006. ISBN 0-615-14008-4.
  9. Mexican druglord imprisoned in Chicago will be moved. 6 October 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  10. NBC News
  11. Mexican druglord unhappy with move from Chicago. ABC News. 13 December 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  12. US Court Documents Claim Sinaloa “Cartel” Is Protected by US Government. Bill Conroy. Borderland Beat. 31 July 2011. Retrieved 6 March 2012.
  13. Meisner, Jason (30 May 2019). "Witness against 'El Chapo' given 15 years in prison in Chicago for key role in trafficking cocaine, heroin for cartel". Chicago Tribune.
  14. Mexican druglord imprisoned in Chicago will be moved. 6 October 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  15. The New Yorker, April 10, 2014, "A Billion-Dollar "Narco Junior" Cuts a Deal"
  16. BBC Two Program "This World:"Secrets of Mexico's Drug War", March 11, 2015
  17. "Upset About a Controversial Narco Deal, Mexico Reaffirms It Will Not Extradite Drug Kingpin el Chapo Guzmán to the U.S".
  18. "Zambada Plea Deal" (PDF). November 8, 2018. Retrieved November 9, 2018.
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