After El Chapo Found Guilty, 'Subtle' Gesture From Wife

Joaquin Guzman will get a mandatory life sentence
By Newser Editors,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 12, 2019 11:46 AM CST
Updated Feb 12, 2019 12:47 PM CST
Drug Lord El Chapo Found Guilty
In this courtroom sketch, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, right, is seated at the defense table with his interpreter, in the U.S. trial of the infamous Mexican drug lord, in New York, Monday Feb. 4, 2019.   (Elizabeth Williams via AP)

After a Hollywood-esque trial and a week of jury deliberations, Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman has been found guilty of all 10 counts against him and will get a mandatory life sentence, reports the New York Times. The first count essentially accused Guzman of being the mastermind of the Sinaloa cartel, and the others dealt with specifics such as drug trafficking. The first count alone came with a mandatory life sentence for the 61-year-old. Jurors heard testimony from nearly 60 witnesses during the three-month trial, which offered a rare glimpse into the brutal world of the cartels. One of the witnesses described how El Chapo personally tortured and murdered three men from rival cartels.

The AP captures the courtroom scene, reporting that a "straight-faced" Guzman watched the jury as US District Judge Brian Cogan read the verdict. As the jury was dismissed, "he leaned back in his chair to catch the eye of his wife, who gave him a subtle thumbs-up," the AP observed. Before discharging the jury, Cogan praised the "remarkable" and meticulous way in which it deliberated, saying it made him "very proud to be an American." CNN reports Guzman will be sentenced June 25.

(More El Chapo stories.)

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