Wife of drug lord ‘El Chapo’ pleads guilty to drug trafficking in US

By Andy Roesgen

CHICAGO, United States (AA) - The wife of notorious drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, pleaded guilty on Thursday to drug trafficking and money laundering charges connected to her husband's crimes.

Emma Coronel Aispuro appeared in a Washington D.C. courtroom where she

pleaded guilty to three counts, including conspiracy to distribute cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin and marijuana in the US, along with money laundering.

Aispuro, a US citizen, was initially not considered a part of her husband's crimes when he was tried and convicted for running the massive Sinaloa drug cartel in 2019.

But investigators continued to look into the notorious escape Guzman made from a Mexican prison in 2015.

In February, they accused the 31-year-old former beauty queen of helping in the escape, along with her sons, and she was arrested at Washington's Dulles Airport. She has been in custody ever since.

While the escape accusation has apparently now been dropped, Aispuro faces years in prison when she will be sentenced Sept. 15.

She was charged under the so-called "Kingpin Act," which prohibits US citizens from having financial dealings with a sanctioned drug trafficker.

Guzman was sentenced to life in prison, plus 30 years, for running his drug cartel and he is housed at a so-called "Super Max" prison in the state of Colorado.

Aispuro's attorney, Jeffrey Lichtman, told reporters before her court appearance on Thursday that she was "happy to take responsibility" for her crimes, "to get on with her life" and to hopefully see the twin daughters she shares with Guzman.