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Thursday, July 20, 2023

Court Approves Motion To Return Millions to Family of Sinaloa Cartel Boss 'El Azul'

"Morogris" for Borderland Beat

Sinaloa Cartel leader Juan Jose Esparragoza Moreno (alias El Azul) and his daughter Brenda Guadalupe Esparragoza Gastélum
A Mexican federal court approved a motion in favor of Brenda Guadalupe Esparragoza Gastelum, the daughter of Sinaloa Cartel kingpin Juan José Esparragoza Moreno (alias El Azul).

The motion was issued by Ms. Esparragoza-Gastelum's defense team to recover MXN$28,119,686 pesos (approximately US$1.7) that were seized by the Mexican government from the drug lord's family on 24 April 2013.

The court's decision effectively terminates the agreement that gave approval for the seizure, and now Mexico's Attorney General's Office (FGR) and Financial Intelligence Unit (UIF) have to prove their case again. The FGR is not allowed to provide new evidences to the case and may only rely on what was presented for the original seizure when it was done ten years ago.

The FGR pushed for the court to discard Ms. Esparragoza-Gastelum's motion, but the court did not agree with this and claimed that the motion was "sufficiently reasonable" and that enough time had lapsed for them to allow for a case re-review.

When the UIF froze these assets in 2013, they argued that Esparragoza Gastelum and her sister Nadia Patricia were involved in money laundering because they were investing in companies that were sanctioned by the US Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) under the Foreign Narcotics Kingpin Designation Act (Kingpin Act) on 24 July 2012. Many of these companies were owned by suspected Sinaloa Cartel members that were sanctioned by the US individually too.

On May 2022, the UIF ordered that Ms. Esparragoza-Gastelum's be taken off Mexico's blacklist, but the MXN$28 million that were seized were not returned.

It is worth noting that in August 2014, El Azul's son José Juan Esparragoza Jimenez was arrested and claimed that his father died earlier that year. Mexican authorities conducted an investigation but they were not able to conclude with if El Azul had died, mainly because they did not have biometric information of El Azul in their database.

El Azul is historically regarded as one of the Sinaloa Cartel's most important figures along with Ismael "El Mayo" Zamabda and Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.

Sources: Milenio; Zeta Tijuana; OFAC; OFAC Chart; Borderland Beat archives

31 comments:

  1. El Azul faked his death. He was
    Federal Security Directorate, DFS/CIA agent. Puro gallo de Badiraguato Sinaloa!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. @ 1.04 I was really hoping this wouldn't be the first comment lol. You'll be saying he is still alive in decades to come, hiding out in the mountains. He'll be 146 by that time, but still Puro gallo de Sinaloa!

      Delete
    2. Yeah I'm sure he's chilling in Cuba with uh... JFK, 2Pac, Lazca and Epstein... Dumb comment

      Delete
    3. I freaking knew some retarded mofo would make a comment like that. The amount of stupid in that guy is beyond comprehension.

      Delete
    4. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

      Delete
    5. @2:18 “146”😂🤣 I don’t know why, when you said that, it made me think of this part in Scarface ..🤦‍♂️😂

      Look at those tits. She's begging for it.

      - What? Are you fucking crazy, man? She's 103 years old.

      - Not that one, man! That one!

      - Which one?

      - The young one.

      Delete
    6. 2:47
      don't forget about Elvis. he's there too on that island. 🤣

      Delete
  2. Now who says crime doesn't pay in Mexico?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Bro tell me of a country that doesn’t return money to criminals? You wanna know something that’s even crazier the United States (I won’t say America cause it might get confused with the continent)let’s criminals free gives them housing and and protection all tax payers money 🤯🤯🤯

      Delete
    2. https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3bZSerDUWaw

      Delete
  3. EL AzuL... Getting his Paper back... Heavy

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The dude is likely worth billions too…

      Delete
  4. It is incredible that even with decisions like this, Mexican justice system is not more hated in by Mexicans

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Because Mexicans have other immediate worries.

      Delete
    2. Just like Trump getting away with everything and also pardoned a few famous people for the 💰

      Delete
  5. I know all cartels are evil bastards, but you gotta give Sinaloa Cartel some credit for situations like this. The daughter of the capo asking her money back and the judge comes up with this bullshit. Sinaloa cartel has some good friends at the top of the foodchain. Mayo Zambada on the run for 4 decades and still playing the game. You gotta give them credits

    ReplyDelete
  6. Azul family won in court, because Azul was loyal to the Mexican government in making his monthly payments. Thats why he never got locked up.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Azul spent several years in Mexican prison before.

      Delete
    2. He did work for them for sometime…

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  7. Money laundering? She probably made her $28 million selling Avon so they had to give it back to her.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Surely that isn't a lot of money for her?

    ReplyDelete
  9. Good. El azul was one of the least shitty bosses mexican disorganized crime ever had.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Because you worked for him, right? Lmao

      Delete
  10. I guess Azul was the only none snitching boss from CDS he was alright i guess, but still a killer, remember you gotta be a killer to be at that level

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And how did you know so much about him, besides what you read online?

      Delete
    2. 9:45 O yea i call him once in a while and we have coffie at least once a month

      Delete
  11. He's alive people !!! Think he really died ? He's chillin out for sure with señor de Los cielos

    ReplyDelete
  12. He's chilling with mencho in jalisco surrounded by government bodyguards for legal protection..

    ReplyDelete

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