AFO and Sinaloa Cartel: Gustavo Rivera 'El EP1' and Mayito Gordo were extradited to U.S. together

Chivis Martinez Borderland Beat  Big Thanks to My Fave Agent

Gustavo Rivera

When I was given the heads up that Mayito Gordo Zambada had been extradited last night, I was told there was another extradition that was sent with Zambada.  It is Gustavo Rivera Martinez and the extradition has been a long time coming….over a decade.

“Gus” now 58 years old, who grew up in Chula Vista, California and is charged of being the money man for AFO.  He was arrested in San José del Cabo, which is NE of Cabo San Lucas at the tip of Baja California.

The two were extradited Thursday night, and appeared together today at their arraignments in the Southern District Federal Court in San Diego.

The two men both entered “not guilty” pleas to presiding Judge, Michael Berg.

“Gus” appeared in his orange jump suit and sat in the jury stand, one row above Mayito, who was also dressed in an orange jumpsuit.  Mayito  was calm and relaxed.

Zambada charged with trafficking and money laundering, served half of his sentence in Mexico

My friend was in the courtroom and says; “Prison has not been good to Gus. No more Botox, hair implants, steroids and other cosmetics to make him look younger to bridge the huge age gap between he and his young wife Cruz Elena Herrera-Rosales. He looked like an elderly woman whose skin is sagging but you can still see the cheek implants. I know it’s hard to ward off balding but his attempt to lower his hairline years ago is now the only hair he has. Cruz had support from his beautiful children to cheer him on. The hearing was before the well-respected and affable Magistrate Michael Berg.”

“It’s bitter sweet for me as my team developed the case against Gus in 1995 when 13 years later while we were tracking him from Cabo to Las Barriles to Pescadera, when I was transferred out of Mexico to another division.

My teammates stayed and directed the Mexican Special Forces to make the arrest. With Gus was Marcos Assemat-Hernandez, who was with Ramon Arellano Félix when he was killed in Mazatlán.

Also, one of Gus’ off-road mates from Canada who spent 3 years in Puente Grande for being with Gus, name is Pavel Kurisek. He was innocent but just road motorcycles with another enthusiast who was a mass-murderer and a trafficker.”

Gus attends David Barron wedding --Gus is second from left front row, between Pato and Coach

Wrong place...definitely wrong time

In 2008 Pavel became collateral damage when during a family vacation in the Mexican Baja peninsula. His passion was dirt biking and off-roading.  After arriving in  Los Barriles, he met another dirt bike enthusiast… a man who introduced himself as Carlos Herrera. The two off-roading enthusiasts hit it off instantly. 

He later discovered in an earth shattering way, that Carlos was really Carlos was really Gustavo Rivera Martinez.  Who he was with three months later when a massive Mexican operation went down that resulted in the capture of Gus.

As Pavel describes; "I received a phone call from “Carlos” asking to drop by a local hot dog stand for a beer."

"Within minutes of my arrival, I was in the middle of a massive take-down."

“I just look around and I can see Carlos and Eduardo. They’ve got their hands up and I said, ‘what the heck, what’s happening?’ And I just start waving my hands and some guys jumped on me and just put me down on the ground and a gun in my head …”

Pavel was transferred by plane to Mexico City where he, Carlos and Eduardo [corrupt former cop turned narco who was with Gus] were paraded before the news media in a perp walk.

Puente Grande, Jalisco, once housed Chapo until he fled in a laundry cart

It was then that Pavel learned Carlos was really Gustavo Rivera Martinez, a narco of the Tijuana Cartel and Mexican police were now accusing him of also working for the cartel.

Pavel who emphasized he had never been in any sort of trouble with the law, not in Czech Republic, not in Canada not in  Mexico.

Pavel attempted suicide after spending 3 years in the chaotic and violent maximum security penitentiary of Puente Grande, in Jalisco, near Guadalajara.  

He was sent to a psychiatric facility where a Canadian ambassador visited him 5 months later informing him he was cleared and now a free man.  

Puente Grande, Jalisco, once housed Chapo until he fled in a laundry cart

Extradition was expected to be rapid, it took almost 12 years

Gus was described as a lieutenant-level manager by the DEA. He was believed a key figure in the cartel, and was close to Enedina Arellano Felix.

He was responsible for the logistics of smuggling drugs to the US and laundering the proceeds, Mexico's interior minister said at the time of his arrest.

"This individual is one of the criminals most sought after by the DEA and FBI," said, at the time, Mexican Interior Secretary Juan Camilo Mourino.

Rivera Martinez, focused his operations in drug trafficking and money laundering.  At the time of his arrest, it was thought he would be on the fast track of being extradited to the United States, that however was not to be and his plane trip back took almost 12 years.

While in Mexican prison, he was classified as a subversive inmate, as he battled against extradition to the United States.

Gus was incarcerated in Federal Center for Social Readaptation (CEFERESO) Number 1 Altiplano, in Almoloya de Juárez.  From the first day he vigorously fought all kinds of ruling of the judicial and prison authorities, through amparos. His main battle was against extradition to the United States of America to stand trial for drug distribution and criminal association.

He was crafty in using the law to avoid extradition. For example:

One of his first arguments was that he wasn’t this Gustavo Rivera Martinez. "I am not Gustavo Rivera Martínez, I am Carlos Herrera Ávalos," he claimed in his defense.

He fought having DNA samples taken and of recording his voice. He obtained an amparo against said procedure from the penitentiary authorities. This gave him some fame within the prison and other prisoners did the same.

But the ploy did not last and eventually tighter laws prevailed and he was subject to the testing which identified him.