Ismael Zambada Garcia, alias 'El Mayo'

Ismael Zambada Garcia, alias 'El Mayo'
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Ismael Zambada Garcia, alias 'El Mayo,' heads a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel. He has used his connections in the Mexican government to push his influence steadily north toward the U.S. border and south toward Cancun, leaving a trail of imprisoned and dead colleagues in his wake.

Along with his partner Joaquin Guzman Loera, alias "El Chapo," Ismael Zambada Garcia is one of the most storied traffickers in Mexico. Originally a farmer from Sinaloa, he has made and broken many alliances with other organizations. His current partnership with Guzman is a big reason why the Sinaloa Cartel is the strongest in the hemisphere. He originally worked with the Juarez Cartel in the 1980s and 1990s.

After the death of the Juarez Cartel head Amado Carrillo Fuentes, alias "El Señor de los Cielos," Zambada created his own organization. With the slow demise of the Tijuana Cartel, he has sought to expand his routes through Sonora and Baja California. He also controls much of the heroin production and shipment from Mexico into the United States. Authorities have arrested his brother, two sons and a nephew in recent years. One of his sons, Ismael Zambada, alias "El Mayito," was extradited to the U.S. in 2010. Some analysts surmised that Zambada might be easing into the shadows, or even retiring, after he appeared on the front cover of the Mexican investigative news magazine Proceso in 2010.

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