Yesterday, Mexican drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán said in court that he will not testify in his own defense at his U.S. trial.
Guzmán
announced his decision after prosecutors rested their case against him in a Brooklyn federal court . After excusing the jury, U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan directly asked Guzmán whether he understood it was his decision, not that of his lawyers , to testify or not.
“Yes, but they counseled me about it and I agree with them,” Guzmán answered.
Guzmán
’s decision was widely expected, as testifying would have exposed him to cross-examination by prosecutors .
Guzmán
was extradited to the United States in January 2017 to face charges that he trafficked massive amounts of cocaine, heroin, marijuana , and other drugs into the United States as leader of the Sinaloa Cartel.
Prosecutors
have put more than 50 witnesses on the stand since the trial began in November 2018, many of them are former Guzmán associates who have pleaded guilty to U.S. charges and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors . Their testimony has offered an unprecedented look at the inner workings of the Mexican drug trade.
Jeffrey Lichtman , one of Guzmán’s lawyers, said that his client was framed by the cartel ’s true leader , Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada , with the help of corrupt government officials.
On Monday, Lichtman said he planned to call two U.S. law enforcement agents, whom he did not name, as defense witnesses on Tuesday morning. Lichtman had said in a court filing that he wanted to call the agents to rebut testimony by two of the prosecution’s witnesses about their earlier statements to law enforcement.
Alejandro Edda
, the Mexican actor who plays Guzmán in the Netflix television drama “Narcos,” made a surprise appearance in the courtroom gallery Monday. Guzmán grinned broadly at Edda after his lawyers told him who he was.
Judge Cogan
said prosecutors should expect to begin their closing argument on Wednesday morning.
The trial has also featured accusations of corruption against Mexican government officials, the most explosive one was when a witness claimed former Mexican President, Enrique Peña Nieto , took a USD $100 million bribe from Guzmán . A spokesman for Peña Nieto has denied the allegation.
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