Mexico Captures Son of Drug Kingpin Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán

Arrest of Ovidio Guzmán sparks violence across Sinaloa state.

Mexico’s security forces captured Ovidio Guzmán, the son of former Sinaloa cartel boss Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, in antidrug raid in the Sinaloa state capital Culiacán, a senior government official said Thursday. 

The operation by Mexico’s federal government prompted cartel members to go on a statewide rampage, burning buses and trucks and blocking entrances and exits to Culiacán. 

The younger Mr. Guzmán was being flown to Mexico City, the official added. 

The U.S. offered a $5 million reward for information leading to the capture of Mr. Guzmán, who was indicted in 2018 in Washington, D.C., on charges of smuggling methamphetamine, cocaine and marijuana.

On Thursday morning, Sinaloa state authorities ordered the suspension of activities and advised residents to stay home. Flights to the state were also canceled. Video on Mexican television showed a military helicopter firing on targets on the ground.

The U.S. Embassy in Mexico City issued a travel warning and said there were reports of shooting in Culiacán and other Sinaloa cities.

The Sinaloa cartel, along with its main rival, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, controls a burgeoning trade in fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that has caused more than 100,000 overdose deaths in the U.S. Much of the fentanyl smuggled into the U.S. is produced in laboratories in Culiacán.

The U.S. said Mr. Guzmán had ordered the murders of informants, including a popular Mexican singer who had refused to sing at his wedding.

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