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MEXICO CITY (AP) — Mexican police arrested the son of a drug cartel leader who was extradited to the United States, authorities said Saturday.
Federal security forces said in a statement that the man was arrested Friday in the western state of Jalisco along with four others on suspicion of drug trafficking, kidnapping and murder.
His full name is not given, but a police official confirmed Saturday that it was Alfredo Beltran Guzman. The official was not authorized to discuss the case publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
Beltran Guzman's father is Alfredo Beltran Leyva, a former leader of the Beltran Leyva cartel who in February pleaded guilty to drug trafficking charges in Washington.
The Beltran Leyva cartel began as an arm of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman's Sinaloa cartel. Beltran Guzman is also related to the Sinaloa cartel leader who is fighting extradition to the U.S.
The Beltran Leyva operation split from the Sinaloa cartel following Alfredo Beltran Leyva's arrest in 2008.
Beltran Guzman was arrested Friday without a shot being fired in Zapopan, Jalisco. Rifles, a grenade and drugs were also seized.
The statement said Beltran Guzman was connected with the kidnapping in August of several people, including at least one of Joaquin Guzman's sons in Puerto Vallarta. It also suggested he was behind attacks in Guzman's hometown, including on his mother's compound.
At some point, pursued by authorities and Guzman's people, Beltran Guzman moved his base of operations from Culiacan, Sinaloa to Guadalajara, Jalisco, the statement said. There he formed a relationship with other criminal groups, presumably the Jalisco New Generation cartel.
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