Since his capture last month, the largest drug kingpin referred to as El Chapo has been front and center in the public eye.
He currently sits in a Mexican prison, as both Mexican officials and U.S. authorities battle over his custody. So where will he end up?
U.S. law enforcement is predicting that Joaquín Guzmán Loera, as he is also referred to, will end up in the custody of New York authorities and face trial in Eastern District of New York, a federal court located in Brooklyn.
Indictments have been made in various areas of the United States, including Miami and Chicago, as a result of alleged large scale drug trafficking to the U.S.
So why do authorities suggest New York will be the most likely location where El Chapo will be extradited?
Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch, previously the U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of New York, is the one who is in charge of deciding his fate. Further, Chapo’s cartel, known as the Sinaloa cartel, was allegedly the largest cocaine supplier of New York for many years.
However, the location of Chapo’s trial, or even if he will be expedited, is not a slam dunk. Mexican authorities are resisting his extradition because of the United State’s policy on the death penalty. The county has outlawed capital punishment and has, in the past, resisted extradition to countries that have such laws in place.
Lynch, however, has spoken to Mexico’s attorney general and may work out a deal to take the death penalty off the table if Chapo is convicted.
His actions, no doubt, will remain in the public eye pending the decision.
