5 months ago
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NEW DELHI:
Nestor Isidro Perez Salas
, known as "
El Nini
," was extradited from
Mexico
to the United States on Saturday. Perez, considered one of the most ruthless Mexican drug criminals by US anti-narcotics agents, served as the head of security for the sons of former
Sinaloa Cartel
kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman. Perez was apprehended by the
Mexican National Guard
in Culiacan in November last year.
"We allege El Nini was one of the Sinaloa Cartel's lead sicarios, or assassins, and was responsible for the murder, torture, and kidnapping of rivals and witnesses who threatened the cartel's criminal drug trafficking enterprise," said US Attorney General Merrick Garland.
Perez is alleged to have led the "Ninis," a violent security group working for Ivan Archivaldo Guzman and other sons of El Chapo. These sons, collectively known as "Los Chapitos," have emerged as powerful leaders within the Sinaloa Cartel and are among the most sought-after targets for US law enforcement. The US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) considers Los Chapitos to be the largest fentanyl traffickers to the United States.
Perez's extradition is one of the most significant during the presidency of Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who took office in December 2018.
DEA chief Anne Milgram in an internal memo, described the Ninis as a violent group that receives military-style training and is responsible for "kidnapping, torturing and killing anyone who oppose the Chapitos or anyone who endangers the Chapitos' fentanyl operation."
