Notorious drug cartel leader Ismael Zambada sentenced to life in US prison

One of the most notorious figures in Mexico's drug cartels, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, will spend the rest of his life in prison, a US judge has ruled, two years after the kingpin was lured to the US in an elaborate sting operation.

The 76-year-old, who founded the Sinaloa Cartel with Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzmán, apologised in court and was also ordered to pay $15bn (£11bn).

In 2024, El Chapo's son led Zambada to believe they were travelling to northern Mexico to inspect clandestine airstrips, when their plane instead landed in Texas and he was arrested.

Last year, Zambada reached a plea deal and admitted to drug smuggling and conspiracy charges in exchange for avoiding the death penalty.

On Monday, US District Judge Brian Cogan sentenced Zambada during a hearing in Brooklyn federal court. His guilty plea carried a mandatory term of life in prison.

Zambada spoke through a Spanish translator during the hearing. He said he was sorry "for the harm I caused and for the example I set" and called for future generations to "choose a different path".

"If there's one thing I can say that has value today, it's this: the violence must end," said the former cartel boss.

"In Mexico and elsewhere affected by this type of crime, too many lives are lost, too many families are destroyed, and too many young people are trapped in a cycle that leads only to prison or death."

The $15bn he was ordered to pay represents drug-trafficking profits from his role as the principal leader of a criminal enterprise, according to the justice department.

El Chapo's son, Joaquin Guzmán Lopez, was also arrested in July 2024 and has pleaded guilty to federal drug charges. He has yet to be sentenced.

In the plea deal, Zambada officially accepted his role in creating the vast criminal network which has sent huge amounts of cocaine and other drugs into the US since he co-founded the Sinaloa Cartel at the end of the 1980s.