The US government has confirmed the arrest of Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, son of 'El Chapo' Guzman. Following the arrest, the Department of Justice released a statement from Attorney General Merrick B. Garland.

Garland stated, “The Department of Justice has detained two more alleged leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the world's most violent and powerful drug trafficking organizations. Ismael Zambada Garcia, or 'El Mayo', co-founder of the Cartel, and Joaquin Guzman Lopez, son of the other co-founder, were arrested today in El Paso, Texas."

According to the Department of Justice, both men are facing multiple charges in the United States. These charges are related to their leadership roles in criminal operations, specifically those connected to the manufacturing and trafficking of fentanyl.

El Mayo and Guzman Lopez are the latest additions to a list of Sinaloa Cartel leaders and associates being prosecuted by the Department of Justice in the United States. Other names on this list include the other co-founder of the Cartel, Joaquin Guzman Loera, or 'El Chapo'; another of El Chapo's sons and alleged Cartel leader, Ovidio Guzman Lopez; and the Cartel's alleged main hitman, Nestor Isidro Perez Salas, or 'El Nini'.

The arrest of Ismael "El Mayo Zambada" and Joaquin Guzman Lopez took place in the United States earlier today.