Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada García pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York to engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise and to racketeering conspiracy. Prosecutors said the plea resolves major counts spanning multiple indictments and removes the death penalty from consideration. Zambada, 75, admitted leading an organization responsible for moving cocaine, heroin, methamphetamine, and fentanyl into the United States over decades. Under the agreement, he faces a mandatory life sentence. The court scheduled sentencing for January 13, 2026. Justice Department officials described the outcome as the product of multi-agency investigations and said the decision not to seek capital punishment cleared the way for a negotiated disposition in Brooklyn.

Admissions in court

During his allocution, Zambada outlined a criminal trajectory he said began in 1969, when, at 19, he planted marijuana in Sinaloa. He told the court the organization expanded into heroin and cocaine trafficking in the 1980s and 1990s and later incorporated fentanyl after acquiring precursor chemicals sourced from China. Zambada acknowledged responsibility for transporting at least 1.5 million kilograms of cocaine to the United States between 1980 and 2024, and he described a command structure that directed subordinates to use violence to protect routes, punish rivals, and maintain discipline. He said bribes were paid to Mexican police and military officials to ensure safe passage and operational freedom. Prosecutors characterized the group as militarized, with a private security arm, access to high-powered weapons, and teams that carried out kidnappings, torture, and assassinations tied to the cartel’s operations. According to the government’s summary, Zambada said “many innocent people also died” as a result of the organization’s activities.

Forfeiture, penalties, and scope of the agreement

Judge Brian M. Cogan approved an order authorizing forfeiture up to $15 billion, representing proceeds and property connected to the enterprise. Additional fines may be imposed at sentencing, but the plea agreement itself specifies a life term. Zambada’s counsel said the deal does not contain a cooperation provision and emphasized that his client “accepts full responsibility.” The government said the resolution consolidates charges brought in several federal districts and that remaining indictments will be dismissed at sentencing under the agreement’s terms. Authorities also noted that civil and administrative actions to recover assets will continue in parallel. The plea does not alter separate cases pending against other alleged leaders and lieutenants affiliated with the same organization.

Arrest, transfer, and competing accounts

Zambada entered U.S. custody in July 2024 after arriving by private aircraft in the border region alongside Joaquín Guzmán López, one of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán’s sons. Prosecutors said the initial matter filed in Texas was transferred to the Eastern District of New York for plea and sentencing because related prosecutions and evidence are centered there. Defense filings stated that Zambada was “kidnapped” and brought into U.S. hands against his will; representatives for the Guzmán family denied that account. Officials reiterated that Zambada’s case did not involve extradition and that Mexico’s separate transfer of suspects in other matters proceeded under assurances that the United States would not seek capital punishment. In public statements this month, the Justice Department confirmed it would not pursue death sentences for Zambada or for Rafael Caro Quintero, citing the posture of the cases and long-standing practice in cross-border cooperation.

Position within the Sinaloa cartel

Government filings identify Zambada as a cofounder and co-leader of the Sinaloa cartel, with responsibility for logistics across continents—coordinating suppliers in South America, maritime and air shipments into Mexico, and cross-border distribution to U.S. markets. The Justice Department has previously secured convictions against other senior figures, including El Chapo, who is serving a life sentence following a 2019 verdict in the same courthouse. Officials said Zambada’s plea further degrades top-level leadership, though they also emphasized that trafficking networks are adaptive and that investigations of remaining command elements are ongoing. In describing the organization, federal agencies have used the term “narco-terrorist” and noted that the Sinaloa cartel was designated a foreign terrorist organization earlier this year, a label that triggers additional criminal exposure for material support and enhances authorities’ ability to disrupt financing.

Evidence and investigative history

The government’s public summary attributes the case to years of wiretaps, informant testimony, seizures, and financial tracing conducted with U.S. and foreign partners. Prosecutors cited records showing coordinated dispatch of tonnage quantities of drugs, payments to corrupt officials, and a system of coded communications to manage shipments and payments. The plea also incorporates prior seizures and prosecutions tied to cartel arms trafficking, precursor imports, and money laundering through shell companies and front businesses. Agents involved in the case said the evidence base includes ledgers and electronic communications that linked high-volume loads to cartel-controlled corridors along the southwest border and to wholesale distributors in U.S. cities.

Statements from officials and defense

Attorney General Pam Bondi said the plea “confirms that decades of cartel leadership come with the highest penalties under U.S. law.” DEA Administrator Terrance (Terry) Cole said the outcome demonstrates that “the most senior figures in transnational trafficking organizations can be brought to justice in U.S. courts.” Zambada’s attorney, Frank Perez, told reporters that the agreement contains no commitment to provide testimony against others and asked the public to remain calm in Sinaloa and surrounding states. The U.S. Marshals Service and local law enforcement maintained an expanded security posture around the courthouse during the hearing and said that measures will remain in place for future proceedings.

Implications and next steps

With sentencing set for January 13, 2026, the court will weigh the forfeiture order, any victim-impact submissions the government presents, and arguments regarding fines. The Justice Department said it will move at sentencing to dismiss remaining indictments against Zambada that are covered by the agreement. Officials also said parallel efforts continue to target finance, logistics, and leadership within cartel factions, including individuals linked to precursor procurement and fentanyl processing. Defense counsel reiterated that the plea ends Zambada’s litigation posture without cooperation and that no further statements from him are anticipated before sentencing. The broader enforcement posture remains unchanged: prosecutors plan to use the plea’s admissions and forfeiture provisions to reinforce ongoing cases and to expand financial recovery actions in the United States and abroad.

Bottom line

Zambada’s guilty plea closes a long-running prosecution with a life sentence on the table, a multibillion-dollar forfeiture order, and no cooperation clause. The record established in court places him at the top of a trafficking enterprise that spanned decades and relied on violence, bribery, and large-scale logistics. What remains is sentencing in January and continued pursuit of other alleged leaders and facilitators that, according to investigators, kept the network operating across borders even as prior prosecutions removed key figures.