Seventeen family members of a well-known Mexican gang leader have reportedly been allowed to cross into the U.S. this week.

The controversial decision is said to be part of a new agreement between President Trump and the notorious Sinaloa Cartel — more specifically, with the son of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán, the cartel’s former leader.

The Sinaloa Cartel, also referred to as the Guzmán-Loera Organization, is a massive criminal network involved in drug trafficking and money laundering, and is considered a terrorist group by some.

El Chapo led the cartel for years and is believed to be responsible for more than 34,000 deaths. Federal agencies once labeled him the most powerful drug trafficker in the world.

After numerous arrests and daring prison escapes, El Chapo was finally captured in 2017 and later extradited to the United States. In 2019, he was convicted on multiple serious charges linked to the Sinaloa Cartel and sentenced to life in prison. Since then, he has been held under tight security at ADX Florence, a high-security facility in Colorado.

However, a surprising twist has emerged in the case. On Wednesday (May 14), independent journalist Luis Chaparro revealed that Ovidio Guzmán López — El Chapo’s son — had previously been offered a deal that benefited both sides.

Ovidio, 35, also known as ‘the Mouse,’ took over cartel operations after his father’s imprisonment. He was extradited to the U.S. in 2023.

Following the agreement, members of López’s family were permitted to enter the U.S. This included El Chapo’s ex-wife, Griselda López Pérez, who reportedly arrived this week.

Just hours later, Mexican Security Secretary Omar García Harfuch confirmed the report.

During a radio interview, García Harfuch explained the reasoning behind the deal, saying it was made during negotiations between López and U.S. authorities while he was being transferred to the United States.

“It is evident that his family is going to the U.S. because of a negotiation or an offer that the Department of Justice is giving him,” he told listeners.

He also clarified that none of the Guzmán-López family members allowed into the U.S. were wanted by Mexican law enforcement.

In a newly released video from Spanish outlet Radio Fórmula, several of El Chapo’s relatives were seen handling luggage while waiting to be processed at the border between Tijuana, Mexico, and San Diego, California.

Harfuch confirmed the news just hours after a speech by US Attorney General Pam Bondi, in which she revealed that the government would soon be pressing charges for ‘narcoterrorism’ against several cartel leaders. This came shortly after Trump officially labeled a number of major cartels as ‘foreign terrorist organisations’.

Following the announcement, Southern California US Attorney Adam Gordon issued a strong warning.

“Let me be direct, to the leaders of the Sinaloa Cartel, you are no longer the hunters, you are the hunted,” he said.

“You will be betrayed by your friends, you will be hounded by your enemies and you will ultimately find yourself and your face here in a courtroom in the Southern District of California.”