Mexican Drug Lord 'El Mayo' Zambada Gets Life in US Prison

Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, a leader of the powerful Sinaloa drug cartel, was sentenced to life in prison on Monday in a US federal court. Zambada admitted to smuggling millions of kilograms of cocaine into the United States over decades. The sentence was handed down by Judge Brian Cogan in Brooklyn, New York. Zambada is one of the most senior Mexican drug traffickers to face justice in the US, following the conviction of fellow Sinaloa leader Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. The life sentence comes after Zambada reached a plea deal last year, in which he confessed to running the cartel’s massive drug trafficking operations. The Sinaloa cartel is one of the most violent and powerful criminal organizations in Mexico, responsible for flooding US cities with cocaine, heroin, and other drugs. Zambada’s arrest and conviction mark a significant victory for US law enforcement agencies that have pursued him for years. He is now expected to spend the rest of his life in a US prison.