Mexican drug kingpin known as 'El Escorpión' is extradited to the U.S. to face charges for flooding L.A. with meth and fentanyl

A high-ranking member of the notorious Jalisco New Generation Cartel is in United States custody after he was extradited from Mexico last week.

Juan Abouzaid was allegedly in charge of coordinating drug shipments and laundering money for the transnational criminal organization, according to the Treasury Department.

The 52-year-old was turned over to U.S. federal authorities in Mexico City on April 26 and is scheduled to appear in the District Court of the District of Columbia on May 17.

Abouzaid, who is also known as 'El Escorpión' or The Scorpion, was arrested on March 9, 2021, in Zapopan, a city in the western state of Jalisco.

 Juan Abouzaid was extradited from Mexico to the United States on April 26. He is facing drug and money laundering charges in the District Court of the District of Columbia

His apprehension took place just six days after the Treasury Department sanctioned him under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act for his ties to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, which trafficked fentanyl and other drugs to the U.S., including Los Angeles.

Abouzaid was first linked to the cartel after the Department of Justice named him in a federal indictment in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia in October 2018.

At the time, the Drug Enforcement Administration's Los Angeles Field Division alleged that in or around 2012, he conspired to distribute cocaine and methamphetamine and knowing and intending to import the drugs into the United States.

The Mexican government blocked his bank accounts in June 2020 due to his link to the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, viewed by criminal analysts as one of the two most powerful criminal organizations in the nation along with the Sinaloa Cartel

The Jalisco New Generation Cartel has a presence in 23 Mexican states.

The United States is offering a $10 million reward for information that leads to the arrest and/or conviction of cartel leader, Nemesio 'El Mencho' Oseguera.

The U.S. Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control last Wednesday accused Juan Manuel Abouzaid of coordinating the shipment of drugs and laundering money for the Jalisco New Generation Cartel.

Juan Abouzaid, an alleged high-ranking leader for the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, was sanctioned by the U.S. Department of Treasury under the Kingpin Act in March 21. The Department of Justice accuses him of coordinating the shipment of drugs and laundering money for the Jalisco New Generation Cartel

Ruben 'El Mencho' Oseguera is the leader of the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, one of Mexico's most powerful criminal groups. The United States government is offering a $10 million reward for information leading to his arrest and/or conviction

Abouzaid's extradition took place following the April 21 arrest of El Mecho's brother, Abraham 'Don Rodo' Oseguera in the Jalisco city of Autlan de Navarro.

However, his released from custody was shockingly announced by Security Minister Rosa Icela Rodriguez during President Andrés Manuel López Obrador's daily press conference on Tuesday.

State of Mexico federal Judge Rogelio León ruled that there were no legal grounds to charge or keep him in prison.

Rodriguez questioned León's decision and said that the Supreme Court of Justice was approached but did not strike down the judge's decision.

She added that U.S. authorities had asked for information on legal processes or pending complaints against Oseguera as part of a binational collaboration in the fight against drugs and arms trafficking, but none had been provided.

'This is a state matter that could seriously affect the prestige of Mexico's institutions,' Rodriguez said.