In
this Jan. 19, 2017 file photo provided by U.S. law enforcement,
authorities escort Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, center, from a plane to a
waiting caravan of SUVs at Long Island MacArthur Airport, in Ronkonkoma,
N.Y. Guzman’s trial is set to begin Monday, Nov. 5, 2018, with jury
selection. Opening statements are expected on Nov. 13. (U.S. law
enforcement via AP, File)
The
almost-mythical criminal pedigree of Mexican drug lord Joaquin “El
Chapo” Guzman, who was extradited in 2017 to face United States drug
conspiracy charges, has sparked security concerns at his upcoming New
York City trial that at times have drawn as much attention as the case’s
sensational allegations.
He
is accused of having a hand in dozens of murders, of using his drug
cartel to smuggle more than 200 tons of cocaine into the United States,
even pulling off running the massive operation from behind bars. That’s
when he wasn’t busy escaping from jail twice.
A look at those concerns for a trial
that is starting Monday with jury selection. Opening statements are
likely November 13 MSN reported.
Prosecutors say Guzman was in the
habit of ordering the killings of anyone who got in his way during his
heyday in Mexico as boss of the Sinaloa cartel.
In his way now is a
lineup of government witnesses who survived the wave of violence and
are expected to give details about the ruthless way he kept power for 20
years in the cutthroat world of international drug trafficking. The
defense says the witnesses are the true bad guys whose testimony
shouldn’t be trusted.
The names of the witnesses have been blacked
out on court documents with prosecutors saying their identities need to
be protected because their cooperation could put them in the crosshairs
of a vengeful cartel. According to court papers, some are being held in
special jail units for their protection, while others are in witness
protection programs.
The list of people who could turn up on the
witness stand is long. Two standout possibilities are twin brothers
Pedro and Margarito Flores, former Chicago-based narcotics wholesalers
who did business with Guzman before their arrest in 2008. They agreed to
cooperate and record phone conversations with Guzman about the size of
shipments smuggled on boats and airplanes.
In one, a voice identified as Guzman’s asks, “How much can you get rid of in a month?”
The
now-imprisoned brothers paid a steep price for flipping: Prosecutors
say in 2009 their father was murdered in Mexico by a cartel hit team.
t
pretrial hearings leading to the trial, heavily armed federal officers
and bomb-sniffing dogs patrolled outside. Anyone trying to attend the
hearings was put through airport-style metal detectors at the courthouse
entrance and at the door of the courtroom itself.
The judge also
agreed with prosecutors that the jury for the case should be kept
anonymous, a measure typical in terrorism or mob cases where jury
intimidation is a concern.
No one’s hiding the ominous nature of
the case from potential jurors. Questions for them on an initial
screening form ask if they’ve ever heard of “El Chapo” along with, “Have
you, or has anyone close to you, ever felt fearful of or threatened by
people who you thought were associated with drug crimes?”
Jurors also will be escorted to and from the courthouse by federal
officers and sequestered from the public while inside. As a reason, the
judge cited prosecutors’ contention that Guzman’s cartel “employs
‘sicarios,’ or hit men, who carried out hundreds of acts of violence,
including murders, assaults and kidnappings.”
After Guzman was
brought to New York, authorities here decided he should be housed in
solitary confinement in a high-security wing of a federal jail in
Manhattan that has held notorious terrorists and mobsters.
Central
to that calculation was Guzman’s history of giving directions to his
lieutenants from Mexican jails and credentials as a two-time escapee
there. The second time was via a mile-long (1.6 kilometer-long) tunnel
dug to the shower in his cell.
The logistical problem for his keepers: The case is being prosecuted across the East River in federal court in Brooklyn.
For
pre-trial hearings, authorities opted to transport him to and from jail
by shutting down the Brooklyn Bridge to make way for a police motorcade
that included a SWAT team and an ambulance, all tracked by helicopters. https://www.tribuneonlineng.com/172220/
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