Ovidio Guzmán López's intermediate hearing in Chicago, originally set for January 9, 2026, to schedule his final sentencing, has been delayed to July 10. The son of 'El Chapo' Guzmán pleaded guilty in July 2025 to drug trafficking and organized crime after extradition from Mexico, securing a deal for reduced sentence and family protection.
The five-month postponement updates the timeline for US proceedings against Sinaloa Cartel leaders outlined earlier this year. Ovidio, known as 'El Ratón', was captured in Mexico in January 2023 and extradited to the US in September 2023. During his July 2025 hearing before Judge Sharon Johnson Coleman in Chicago's Northern District of Illinois, he admitted guilt on drug trafficking and organized crime charges, confessing to violent acts against officials, bulk cash and cryptocurrency money laundering, bribes, and coordinating kidnappings/murders of rivals.
As the first 'Chapito' to negotiate such a deal, Ovidio's case highlights cartel strategies under pressure. His brother Joaquín Guzmán López, who surrendered alongside Ismael 'El Mayo' Zambada in July 2024, faces a June 2026 hearing after pleading guilty in December 2025. El Mayo's hearing is set for April 2026.
