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All Eyes on Ovidio Guzmán: Who Will He Betray?
Ovidio Guzmán, son of El Chapo, pleaded guilty in the U.S. and could implicate cartel leaders or even Mexican authorities.
By  Santiago Guevara
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All Eyes on Ovidio Guzmán: Who Will He Betray?
FOTO: ARCHIVO DE MUNDONOW

Posted on07/11/25 at 20:42

  • All Eyes on Ovidio Guzmán: Who Will He Betray?
  • Ovidio Could Incriminate “El Mayo.”
  • Internal War in the Sinaloa Cartel.

After pleading guilty before U.S. justice, expectations are growing regarding the information that Ovidio Guzmán might provide.

Including possible connections to criminal networks.

And also institutional corruption.

So reported EFE.

All Eyes on Ovidio Guzmán: Who Will He Betray?

— Univision Noticias (@UniNoticias) July 11, 2025

After accepting four drug trafficking charges in a Chicago court, Ovidio Guzmán López—known as “El Ratón”—has become a key figure in the legal battle against the Sinaloa Cartel.

Although his cooperation with the justice system has not yet been fully revealed, experts indicate that the scope of his testimony could shake not only organized crime but also institutions within the Mexican state.

Researcher Vanda Felbab-Brown, from the Brookings Institution, suggests that Guzmán might go beyond details about the Sinaloa Cartel or its rival, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.

“Could he also speak about corruption networks within police forces, the military, or the government of Sinaloa?” she asks. This possibility poses a politically and legally high-risk dimension both in Mexico and the United States.

The Department of Justice considers Ovidio a cartel leader responsible for trafficking methamphetamines, money laundering, and murders.

The prosecution is seeking a reduced sentence in exchange for cooperation, which has raised concerns about whom he might betray to save himself from life in prison.

The Chapitos and Their War with “El Mayo”

— Soledad Durazo Barceló (@SoledadDurazo) July 11, 2025

Ovidio is not alone. He is part of the group known as “Los Chapitos,” along with his brothers Iván Archivaldo, Jesús Alfredo, and Joaquín Guzmán López.

The latter is imprisoned in Chicago after having turned himself in voluntarily, and it’s expected that he, too, will plead guilty.

The four brothers controlled methamphetamine laboratories in Sinaloa that produced up to 2,000 kilos per month for sale in the United States and Canada.

Their leadership has been challenged by Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada, a longtime ally of El Chapo, with whom they are now engaged in an internal war.

Peter Reuter, a professor in Maryland, explains that the cartel split between “Los Mayos” and “Los Chapitos,” and that this fracture has led to over 1,000 deaths in Sinaloa since 2023.

The alleged negotiated surrender of Joaquín Guzmán López on a private flight with Zambada has fueled theories of internal betrayals.

An Alliance with the Jalisco Cartel?

— El Nacional (@ElNacionalWeb) July 11, 2025

Amid the conflict, analysts suggest that “Los Chapitos” might have attempted an alliance with the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, their traditional rival.

This maneuver would aim to weaken the faction of “El Mayo” and consolidate their control over the Mexican Pacific region.

Felbab-Brown warns that cooperation agreements with the prosecution could reveal details of this possible alliance, as well as confirm whether the Guzmáns plan to incriminate their old allies to gain judicial benefits.

The internal war is not only violent but also strategic and legal.

ALSO OF INTEREST: Ovidio Guzmán Pleads Guilty to Drug Trafficking and Could Avoid Life Sentence