Guacho’s “fake” life is over: 11 or so years of paid vacations
Well yes, friends of digital life, the drug trafficking soap opera brings us a new chapter worthy of a Netflix script, but with very, very real consequences. Cristian Fernando Gutiérrez Ochoa, alias “Guacho”, has just won an all-paid trip to a United States federal prison for the next 140 months. His crime: being the son-in-law of the most wanted boss, Nemesio “El Mencho” Oseguera, and dedicating himself to the creative world of money laundering for the Jalisco New Generation Cartel (CJNG). The ironic thing is that the guy had already faked his own death to escape, a plot twist that didn’t turn out so well in the end.
It turns out that “Guacho” was living his best life in California, under a false identity, as if he were a character in a video game with a poorly applied cheat code. Together with his girlfriend (daughter of the aforementioned boss) they lived in a 1.2 million dollar mansion, financed, obviously, with dirty money from drug trafficking. A true love story… sponsored by methamphetamine and cocaine. Until the gringo authorities, who don’t have much sense of romance, put a stop to it.
The “mistake” of his life and the judge’s speech that is scary
In court, with all the solemnity that the moment required, “Guacho” appeared repentant. He said he accepted responsibility for his “mistake” and would never make one like that again. Awww, how cute. What he did not mention is that his “mistake” included laundering millions and, according to accusations in Mexico, being linked to the kidnapping of two sailors. Things from everyday life, you know.
But the one who really stole the show was federal judge Beryl Howell. When passing sentence, he did not mess around. He declared that the CJNG is a “dangerous force” within the United States and that “Guacho’s” life was “a dangerous way to make a living” and “a dangerous way to live.” Basically, it gave him the award for the biggest Red Flag of the year. Prosecutors, who asked for 14 years, painted him as a trained and infiltrated agent, far from being a simple lucky boyfriend.
Meanwhile, the defense lawyers tried the letter of the “rehabilitated young man” who seeks to rebuild his life with integrity. A laudable effort, although it sounds like dialogue from a bad redemption movie that no one believes.
El Mencho and his family: the most problematic family tree in Mexico
The conviction of “Guacho” is only the last piece in the judicial puzzle against the Oseguera family. El Mencho’s brother-in-law, José González ValenciaRubén “El Menchito” Oseguera, has a room reserved for life after being sentenced to life imprisonment. It seems that family reunions are going to have to be by video call from different maximum security penitentiaries.
The most surreal thing about all this lore is that, according to the authorities, El Mencho told his partners that he had killed his own son-in-law for being a liar. In reality, “Guacho” had only put on an entire theater of his death to escape to California. A level of drama that even the Kardashians would envy.
With a reward of 15 million dollars on the head of El Mencho and the designation of the CJNG as a terrorist organization, the United States is pulling all its legal artillery. The message is clear: the luxury party with drug money can end in a cell where the only influencer you will follow will be the guard on duty.
Are you surprised by how these criminal networks operate from abroad? Share this note so that more people know the realities behind drug trafficking. And explore more content related to operations against organized crime in our current affairs section.
