Joaquin Guzman Lopez, one of the sons of infamous Sinaloa cartel leader Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, is preparing to plead guilty in the United States next week, according to newly released federal court filings. The announcement marks a major development in the US government’s ongoing prosecution of senior members of the cartel.

Guzman Lopez was arrested in Texas in July 2024 after arriving on a small private plane. He originally pleaded not guilty to several counts of drug-trafficking conspiracy, but court records made public on Friday confirm he will change his plea during a hearing scheduled for Monday in the US District Court in Chicago.

A Significant Shift in the Case

The expected plea change follows the growing legal pressure on the Guzman family. One of Joaquin’s brothers, Ovidio Guzman, pleaded guilty in July 2025 as part of a negotiated deal that reduced his potential sentence. During that process, Ovidio acknowledged that he and his brothers—known collectively as “Los Chapitos”, or “Little Chapos”—took over the cartel’s operations after their father’s 2016 arrest.

Mexican news outlet MVS Noticias suggested that Guzman Lopez’s decision to plead guilty could signal intensifying cooperation with US prosecutors, potentially revealing new details about the inner workings of the Sinaloa cartel.

Prosecutors Step Away From Seeking the Death Penalty

Local outlets in Chicago, including ABC 7, reported that US prosecutors have confirmed they will not seek the death penalty for Guzman Lopez. While details remain sealed, the shift has fueled speculation that a plea agreement may already be underway, potentially involving reduced charges in exchange for cooperation.

Guzman Lopez is scheduled to appear in court at 1:30pm local time (19:30 GMT) on Monday, where he is expected to formally enter his new plea.

Two Brothers Still at Large

Two other members of Los Chapitos—Ivan Archivaldo Guzman Salazar and Jesus Alfredo Guzman Salazar—are also under indictment in the US on trafficking charges but remain fugitives. Both are considered high-level cartel leaders and have multimillion-dollar rewards posted for their capture.

Their father, El Chapo, is currently serving a life sentence at a high-security federal prison in Colorado after his conviction in 2019.

Tensions Within the Sinaloa Cartel

Guzman Lopez’s arrest set off a wave of internal conflict within the cartel. According to official Mexican figures, clashes between the Los Chapitos faction and forces loyal to longtime Sinaloa boss Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada triggered widespread violence. Authorities estimate that these confrontations resulted in roughly 1,200 deaths and 1,400 disappearances.

Zambada, who was detained alongside Guzman Lopez last year, later claimed he did not know where the plane was headed and accused Guzman Lopez of deceiving him, leading to his sudden handover to US authorities.

Fentanyl Trafficking at the Center of US Accusations

US officials continue to accuse the Sinaloa cartel of being a primary source of fentanyl, the synthetic opioid responsible for tens of thousands of overdose deaths in recent years. The cartel has been a central point of tension between Washington and Mexico, especially as US agencies push for stronger cross-border cooperation.

The US government has designated several Mexican crime groups as global terrorist organizations, and in recent months Washington imposed additional sanctions on the two fugitive Chapitos brothers. Their individual US cash-reward offers now stand at $10 million each.

The upcoming court hearing for Guzman Lopez is expected to shape the next phase of US efforts to dismantle the cartel’s leadership structure and curb its role in the fentanyl crisis.