The US Government Is Worried 'El Chapo' Guzman's Legal Team May Have Cartel Infiltrators Christopher Woody - Business Insider
go to original March 8, 2017

Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, right, and defense attorneys Michael Schneider, center right, and Michelle Gelernt, center left, in a January court sketch (Reuters/Christine Cornell)

Former Sinaloa cartel kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman has pleaded innocent to the array of charges against him and his next court date is May 5.

But the legal wrangling around the Mexican capo has not slacked.

In the most recent development, US prosecutors slated to face Guzman in an Eastern District of New York courtroom have asked that US authorities investigate any foreigners added to Guzman's legal team.

US Attorney Robert Capers and Arthur Wyatt, Narcotic and Dangerous Drug Section chief for the Justice Department's Criminal Division, argued that, based on their experience, an unvetted member of the defense team could compromise the case brought by the government.

"If a foreign lawyer or investigator that also was a member of the Sinaloa cartel was united with the defense team, [they] could travel to the United States, review the evidence that is protected, and travel later out of the United States with that knowledge," Capers and Wyatt wrote in a letter to Eastern District judge Brian Cogan.

"If a member of the cartel traveled to the United States and found out the identity of a cooperating Mexican witness, [they] could later travel to Mexico with this information and give the name of the witness to other members of the Sinaloa cartel who could kidnap or kill the family of that witness," the letter added.

The letter was confirmed to Univision by Jose Refugio Rodriguez, one of three Mexican lawyers who represented Guzman in his home country.

Read the rest at Business Insider

Related: Nearly Half of Mexicans Think 'El Chapo' Guzman Shouldn't Have Been Extradited (Business Insider)

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