A high-ranking Sinaloa drug cartel member was extradited to the United States over the weekend to face international drug trafficking and firearms charges.
Jorge Ivan Gastelum Avila, 42, made his initial appearance in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Tuesday to face those charges.
Officials have called Gastelum Avila – a.k.a. "El Cholo Ivan" – a "prolific" purveyor of violence within the Sinaloa Cartel, run by the notorious Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.
Between 2009 and 2016, Gastelum Avila was a lead assassin for Sinaloa and worked closely with El Chapo, prosecutors said.
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In his alleged role as the "plaza boss" for the Mexican city of Guamúchil, prosecutors said Gastelum Avila supervised at least 200 armed men and controlled the drug trafficking activities in the city and around the area.
Gastelum and El Chapo were arrested in January 2016 in Los Mochis, Sinaloa, Mexico. In December 2018, a grand jury returned an indictment against Gastelum Avila. Mexican authorities arrested Gastelum Avila in March 2020 based on a provisional request from the U.S. He was extradited from Mexico to the U.S. on Saturday.
"Without a doubt, many lives on both sides of the border have been spared now that he is on U.S. soil facing drug- and firearms-related charges," Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) Arizona Special Agent in Charge Scott Brown said in a statement.
Gastelum Avila is facing multiple drug charges and a weapons charge. He faces a maximum penalty of life in prison for the drug conspiracy charge and a mandatory consecutive sentence of 30 years for the firearms offense.
