Mexican authorities have confirmed that the son of jailed drug lord Joaquin Guzman better know as “El Chapo” is amongst those who were kidnapped at an upscale resort in Puerto Vallarta.
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Ivan Archivaldo is in his 30s and is one of El Chapo’s two sons.
The state attorney general in Puerto Vallarta said six people suspected of being members of Guzman’s Sinaloa Cartel were abducted by a group of armed men on Monday.
“Jesus Alfredo Guzman Salazar, 29, is a son of Joaquin (Guzman) Loera”.
It remains unclear, however, if another one of Guzman’s sons, Ivan Archivaldo, was also kidnapped.
“Almaguer said one of the men managed to escape”.
At the news conference, a police spokesperson identified four others who had been kidnapped, but said law enforcement had no leads as to their whereabouts.
Analysts say the abductions are the clearest evidence yet that a power struggle is under way for control of the vast cartel, considered one of the largest criminal enterprises in the Western Hemisphere.
Mr Almaguer said the rival Jalisco New Generation drug cartel – which dominates the region – was suspected of being behind the kidnapping. Ivan Archivaldo has reportedly taken over parts of his father’s business and Raul Benitez, a security specialist and political science teacher at the National Autonomous University of Mexico said the child’s mental health is a concern. “Ivan Archivaldo was, I believe, a bit insane”, Benitez said. “He spent all his time posting things on Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter”.
Images published by El Blog del Narco show gunmen, believed to be from the rival Jalisco New Generation syndicate, storming in as the younger Guzman and his companions sit around a table.
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“People have information about the family’s movements and they want to destroy the family”.
