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In recent months, US officials have arrested the wives of three people in the Sinaloa Cartel, including “El Chapo” Guzman.
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The arrest sheds light on cartel operatives and security experts saying that the overlooked but important role that wives play in organized crime in Mexico.
Ciudad Juárez, Mexico-The infamous Sinaloa Cartel continues to rely on his wife for more complex operations, according to cartel operatives, security analysts and government indictments.
The arrests of Emma Coronel Aispro, wife of Kingpin Joaquín Guzman, and Mia and Olivia Flores, wives of cartel twin brothers and distributors Pedro and Margaret Flores, were arrested by Kingpin’s wife. You can get a glimpse of the impact. It goes beyond the operation of the cartel.
On February 22, Coronel was arrested at Dulles International Airport in Virginia and charged with helping her husband operate a cartel that he had led for decades.Coronel Acknowledge sin For drug trafficking and conspiracy charges in June.
Aispuro has also been accused of assisting at least two of Guzman’s escapes by planning and passing messages. ..
“The defendant agrees that by providing assistance to Guzman, she assisted and endorsed the overall purpose of the DTO,” the prosecutor said in Coronel’s 12-page indictment.
Coronel’s arrest is “amazing,” but the accusation is not, according to operatives at the Sinaloa Cartel in Culiacan, home of the cartel.
“The authorities are not paying much attention to my wife [of cartel members].. It was pretty surprising about this arrest, but the fact that she was working for the organization is not news. She wasn’t the first, “and wouldn’t be the last wife to do so, the operative who asked for anonymity for safety reasons told insiders.
Cartel members said most of Kingpin’s wives are responsible for “complex” tasks such as money laundering, coordinating operations, and communicating with other cartel members, authorities, or lawyers.
Organized crime is “a very patriarchal world,” but women are taking advantage of it, said Guadalupe Correa Cabrera, a security expert and author of “Los Zetas Inc.”
“The prejudice against women that we think is weak and unable to get involved in a world like organized crime actually works in favor of women,” she told insiders.
Correa-Cabrera said women have access to privileged information and places where men may be restricted.
“Emma Coronel was free to enter and leave the prison just because she was El Chapo’s wife. She even attended her husband’s trial while being investigated by US authorities. It’s done, “said Coronel Cabrera.
“Women still play a secondary role within criminal gangs, [are] It definitely enhances their presence. “
Chicago-based Flores’ twin wives, who have been accused of smuggling drugs into the United States in collaboration with the Sinaloa Cartel, appear to reflect that trend.
Pedro and Margarito Flores were sentenced to 14 years in prison in 2015 and released to the Witness Protection Program at the end of last year after agreeing to cooperate with Guzman.
Vivianna Lopez, 40, also known as Mia Flores, and Valerie Gaytan, 45, also known as Olivia Flores, were arrested in June on charges of money laundering. Over 10 years.
The twin wives write a book called “Cartel Wife”, which describes the marriage and life of a cartel member after her husband was arrested.
“I want to find out about the personal aspects of this story without filtering why people enter a criminal life,” the book introduces. To tell..
“Between 2005 and 2008, our husband trafficked $ 2 billion to Mexico, and we’ll see these homes filled with money,” Olivia said. Told the insider In an interview in 2017.
“We knew exactly what they were doing. We didn’t know the details, but we knew what they were doing,” Olivia said. Told Vogue In an interview in 2018.
Sinaloa Cartel operatives said Kingpin’s wife’s involvement could be a double-edged sword because it has “very sensitive information.”
“It’s very easy [for] Sometimes when we talk about the wife of “Patrone”, it doesn’t work. They are always around, gathering information and can be of great help to the organization, but they can also sell the same information to other groups and authorities. “
The operative refused to comment specifically on Flores’ twins and their wives.
This month, both Olivia and Mia pleaded not guilty to money laundering. According to their book, both live under the assumed identity because of the danger posed by the cooperation of their husbands.
Coronel has been found guilty of all charges and will be sentenced to prison on September 15. She is facing life imprisonment.
Read the original article Business insider