Cristian Gutierrez-Ochoa, a Mexican cartel leader, has been hit with allegations involving faking his death, absconding from Mexico, and living luxuriously under a sham ID in California. The 37-year-old is one of the higher-ups in the Cártel de Jalisco Nueva Generación.
Just this week, he was hit with charges relating to drug trafficking and money laundering. Per Nicole Argentieri, a senior Justice Department official, Ochoa
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"allegedly directed the importation of tons of methamphetamine and cocaine into the United States and engaged in violence to aid the cartel's criminal activities."
Per CBS News, Cristian Ochoa was cuffed in Riverside, California, on Tuesday, November 19. He is the son-in-law of Nemesio Oseguera-Cervantes, a.k.a. El Mencho, who is in charge of the Jalisco New Generation cartel. Per the outlet, officials have described the latter as "one of the world's most violent and prolific drug trafficking organizations."
Cristian Gutierrez-Ochoa kidnapped two Navy officers and held them for ransom, among other things
As reported by the outlet, the Jalisco cartel took Gutierrez-Ochoa under their wing in 2014, where he was put in charge of coordinating and transporting 40,000 kilograms of methamphetamine and about 2,000 kilograms of cocaine from Mexico to the US.
However, in 2021, he allegedly abducted two members of the Mexican Navy and held them for ransom in exchange for his mother-in-law, Oseguera-Cervantes's wife. At the time, the latter was in the custody of the authorities in Mexico.
Oseguera-Cervantes told everyone he had murdered Gutierrez-Ochoa for lying, and instead helped him abscond to the US to be reunited with his wife, the Justice Department claims. Oseguera-Cervantes is currently on the run as a fugitive, and the State Department is offering anyone who captures and brings him in a $10 million reward.
Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said in an official statement:
"As these charges allege, Gutierrez-Ochoa directed the trafficking of lethal narcotics, causing untold destruction in our communities. To those seeking to harm Americans and to profit from their pain, this arrest should serve as a reminder — we will find you and bring you to justice.”
M. Argentieri, head of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division, also weighed in:
"The Criminal Division is committed to disrupting and dismantling Mexican drug trafficking organizations. Tuesday's arrest sends a powerful message to cartel leadership: we will work tirelessly with our domestic and international law enforcement partners to hold them accountable.”
DEA Administrator Anne Milgram also blamed the Jalisco cartel for "unprecedented violence in Mexico and helping to fuel the deadly drug crisis in the United States." She also vowed, on behalf of the DEA, to put an end to the Jalisco Cartel and bring them to justice.
The Jalisco Cartel is notorious for producing and bringing back to the States massive doses of fentanyl, a drug that can prove fatal in the wrong hands. Allegedly, they sneak the substances under disguises like Xanax, Percocet, or oxycodone. Per CBS News, such substances can be blamed for the overdose of over 70,000 individuals in the nation alone.
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