The Mexico government has released video of the moment El Chapo’s drugs lord son was detained outside his home in Culiacan, placed on his knees and told to call his brother to stop a counterattack on soldiers by armed cartel members around the city.
Video of the failed arrest of Ovidio Guzmán López was revealed by Mexico’s Defense Secretary Luis Cresencio Sandoval on Wednesday — an incident that embarrassed the administration of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
In the footage, Ovidio Guzmán López is shown surrounded by soldiers with one telling him to call his brother, Iván Archivaldo Guzmán, and tell him to stop the gun battle he launched in response to his brother’s house being surrounded.
‘Tell them to stop everything,’ a solider says as the sound of high-powered artillery rattles away in the background.
‘Stop this, stop this. I already turned myself in,’ Guzmán Lópezcan be heard telling his brother.
The Mexican government revealed Wednesday morning video footage of Ovidio Guzmán López’s October 17 detention that spared a fierce gun battle before he was released
The son of Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán turns himself in during an operation earlier this month in Mexico
Archivaldo responded ‘no’ and shouted threats against the soldiers and their families. The attacks continued and eight minutes later the first wounded soldiers were reported.
Security forces ultimately withdrew to avoid more bloodshed. Thirteen people were killed in gun battles around the city.
President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (left) once again defended the decision to release Ovidio Guzmán López (right), reiterating it was made to protect civilian lives and prevent bloodshed
A purported cartel fighter carrying a grenade launcher to take with him to fight the army in Culiacán on October 17 after violence erupted over the arrest of El Chapo’s son
A body is seen laying on the street after the deadly gun battle. Following the apprehension of Ovidio Guzmán López on October 17. Culiacán exploded in violence with armed civilians in trucks roaring through the city’s center shooting what appeared to be .50-caliber sniper rifles and machine guns
Northwestern Mexico was turned into a war zone in mid-October after at least eight people dead as a result of a gun battle between armed men loyal to El Chapo’s son, Ovidio Guzmán López, and Mexican law enforcement
Mexico’s Public Safety Secretary Alfonso Durazo said that the aborted operation to arrest Guzmán was a ‘hasty action’ that deserves criticism, but added the government’s security strategy is sound.
Critics argued that the government should have anticipated the overwhelming response by the Sinaloa cartel and that by withdrawing they gave cartels a road map on how to avoid capture.
Durazo described the action as a ‘tactical stumble’ but said it doesn’t invalidate the security strategy.
Sandoval said that there was an arrest order for Guzmán based on a Sept. 13 United States extradition request.
Ovidio Guzmán López (left), along with his brothers, is believed to be influential in the cartel since their father, Joaquín ‘El Chapo’ Guzmán, (right) was jailed in the United States
A burnt vehicle sat across the street from a soccer stadium in Culiacán, Mexico, a day after armed gunmen waged an all-out assault against the Mexican military, who were seeking the arrest of El Chapo’s son, Ovidio Guzmán López
Dozens of bullet casings remained littered on a sidewalk in Mexico, a day after heavily armed gunmen attacked the military and forced the released of El Chapo’s son
The violence began when cartel leaders including Guzmán López, one of the drug lord’s sons, who were hiding in a house and opened fire on a group of soldiers who had been patrolling the area.
The army returned fire, stormed the house and took four people into custody – including Guzmán López.
But as word spread that they had come under attack, scores of other gang members descended on the house to try to save them.
They overpowered the 35 soldiers, who eventually retreated without Guzmán López. It sparked a night of fighting in the area.
Videos emerged on social media of purported gang members taking to the streets with machine guns and grenade launchers. Children crouched next to cars and asked their parents why people were shooting.
The war-like battle left 16 people injured. At least 51 inmates escaped from Aguaruto Penitentiary in Culiacán. Two were captured.