Mexican Drug Kingpin’s Wife Pleads Guilty in D.C. Court
WASHINGTON — The wife of Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 15 after pleading guilty Thursday in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., to drug trafficking and money laundering charges.
Emma Coronel Aispuro, 31, pleaded guilty after assisting her husband to run the murderous Sinaloa Cartel.
“The defendant aided and abetted the objectives of the Sinaloa Cartel,” Anthony Nardozzi, deputy chief of Litigation at the Justice Department, told the court.
She was arrested Feb. 15 at Dulles International Airport as she entered the United States for a trip unrelated to drug activities.
Her husband is serving a life plus 30 years prison term on charges that include murder, money laundering, drug trafficking, racketeering and organized crime. He was sentenced two years ago to serve his prison term at a Supermax facility in Florence, Colo., after escaping twice from Mexican prisons.
In 2016, Guzman’s net worth from his international crime syndicate was estimated between $2 billion and $4 billion.
His wife is accused of helping Guzman in his last escape from a Mexican prison in 2015. She also acted as a go-between and courier for some of his drug deals.
Coronel, a dual Mexican and American citizen, is a former beauty queen known for her flair with fashion. During her guilty plea last week, she wore a green jail uniform and spoke through an interpreter.
She was charged with conspiracy to distribute heroin, cocaine, marijuana and methamphetamine for importation into the United States; conspiracy to launder monetary instruments; and violating the Kingpin Act by engaging in illegal transactions on behalf of her husband.