On Saturday, the Justice Department announced that a suspected senior assassin in the Sinaloa drug cartel in Mexico was extradited to the United States. He will be accused of drug and weapons smuggling.
“El Nini,” also known as Nestor Isidro Perez Salas, was a “lead sicarios,” or assassin, for the Sinaloa Cartel. Following his extradition on Saturday morning, Attorney General Merrick Garland released a statement claiming that he was responsible for the murder, torture, and kidnapping of rivals and witnesses who posed a threat to the cartel’s illegal drug trafficking business.
Garland also accused El Nini of being involved in the production and sale of fentanyl by the Sinaloa Cartel, including in the United States.
The United States had offered a reward of up to $3 million for information that would result in the arrest of Perez Salas, who is currently facing charges of conspiracy to traffic fentanyl, cocaine, and weapons, among other things.
He is believed to be a close associate of the sons of Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, who is currently serving a life sentence in the United States.
In November 2023, he was apprehended in the city of Culiacan in the northwest of Mexico, less than a week after President Biden and Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador committed to enhancing their collaboration in the fight against drug trafficking, particularly the illicit trade of the potent synthetic drug fentanyl.
“El Nini was a significant factor in the notorious Sinaloa Cartel, which is considered one of the most lethal drug trafficking organizations in the world,” stated Mr. Biden in a statement on Saturday. “The United States has charged him with the murder, torture, and abduction of numerous rivals, witnesses, and others, in addition to his involvement in illicit fentanyl trafficking.” is a day that is favorable for justice.
At the time of his arrest, Mike Vigil, the former director of international operations for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, described Perez Salas as “a complete psychopath” to the Associated Press. Vigil also commented that “taking him out of commission is a good thing for Mexico.”
The UAccording to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the United States experienced over 107,000 drug overdose fatalities in 2023. Approximately 70% of them were attributed to fentanyl.
According to the U.S. government, fentanyl is frequently manufactured from products obtained in China and subsequently transported across the border from Mexico by drug traffickers, particularly the Sinaloa cartel.
