MEXICO – Heavy fighting broke in the northern part of this country after security forces seized one of the sons of jailed “drug kingpin” Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán.
The fighting raged for several hours on Thursday after Ovidio Guzmán was found during a routine patrol in the city of Culiacán.
Guzmán was later released – to avoid further violence, the authorities said.
Security minister Alfonso Durazo said a patrol of the National Guard militarized police came under heavy fire from within the house where Guzmán was held, forcing them to retreat.
Guzmán was arrested but later released, “to avoid more violence in the area and preserve the lives of our personnel and recover calm in the city,” Durazo said.
Under El Chapo’s leadership, the Sinaloa cartel was the biggest supplier of drugs to the United States (US), officials said.
With El Chapo now behind bars, the cartel was said to be partially controlled by Ovidio Guzmán, who is accused of drug trafficking in the US.(BBC)
