`El Mayo' Zambada, the infamous Mexican cartel leader, has entered a plea of not guilty to charges of narcotics trafficking and murder.

• On Friday, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, the longtime leader of Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel, entered a not guilty plea to U.S. narcotics trafficking and murder charges.
• In a letter, Zambada stated that he was kidnapped in Mexico and transported to the U.S. by Guzmán López, the son of imprisoned Sinaloa co-founder Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán.
• Zambada oversaw a military-grade weapons arsenal, a private security force nearly resembling an army, and a hitman squad that executed assassinations, kidnappings, and torture, according to prosecutors.

On Friday, Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, a longtime leader of Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel, entered a not guilty plea to U.S. drug trafficking and murder charges.

Zambada remained silent during the court hearing, except to respond with "yes" or "no" to the judge's standard questions about understanding documents and procedures, as well as his emotional state - "fine, fine," he replied. His lawyers entered a not-guilty plea on his behalf.

For over two decades, American law enforcement has been searching for Zambada. On July 25, he was apprehended in the United States and has been in custody ever since, arriving at an El Paso airport in a private plane with another cartel leader, Joaquín Guzmán López, according to federal authorities.

In a letter, Zambada stated that he was kidnapped against his will in Mexico and transported to the U.S. by Guzmán López, the son of imprisoned Sinaloa co-founder Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán.

U.S. Magistrate Judge James Cho ordered Zambada to be detained until trial. Despite requesting no bail, U.S. prosecutors in Brooklyn urged the judge to keep him in custody.

""He was one of the most powerful narcotics kingpins in the world, if not the most, and he co-founded the Sinaloa cartel, which he sat atop for decades," Assistant U.S. Attorney Francisco Navarro stated."

After the brief hearing, Zambada accepted some help getting out of a chair before walking out slowly but unaided.

Due to a lack of seating, only closed-circuit video allowed other journalists to observe sketch artists in the small courtroom.

In court and in a letter to the judge, prosecutors stated that Zambada oversaw a massive and violent operation, which included an extensive collection of military-grade weapons, a private security force nearly resembling an army, and a team of "sicarios," or hitmen, who were responsible for carrying out assassinations, kidnappings, and torture.

Prosecutors claimed that his tenure involved ordering the murder of his own nephew, just months ago, and his blood was on his hands.

"The only way to prevent the defendant from committing more crimes is by keeping them in a United States jail cell," Navarro stated.

At an earlier court appearance in Texas, Zambada also entered a plea of not guilty to the charges.

The arrest of a member of the Sinaloa cartel has sparked a fight between rival factions, resulting in gunfights that have killed several people. Schools and businesses in Culiacan, the capital of Sinaloa, have closed due to the fighting. The conflict is believed to be between factions loyal to Zambada and those led by other sons of "El Chapo" Guzmán, who was convicted of drug and conspiracy charges and sentenced to life in prison in the U.S. in 2019.

Guzmán López pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking and other charges in federal court in Chicago, where he is now awaiting trial on a separate drug trafficking indictment.