US prosecutors vie for kingpin's trial

Federal prosecutors across the United States are already jockeying over who will handle any case against Mexican drug cartel kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, though it's far from clear whether he'll ever be brought to the US to face charges.

Who in the US gets to prosecute the longtime fugitive, apprehended over the weekend in Mexico and now charged with violating his country's drug trafficking laws, likely will turn on which office has the strongest case - and perhaps some politics.

"You want No 1 to be the best shot that you have," said David Weinstein, a former assistant US attorney in the Southern District of Florida in Miami who helped prosecute several high-profile drug traffickers from Colombia and Haiti in his 11 years in the office. "What do they say? If you shoot at the king, you make sure you hit him in the head."

At least seven federal district courts have indictments pending against Guzman on a variety of charges, and several already are pressing for extradition. He had been dubbed "public enemy No 1" in Chicago even before his arrest at a Mexican beach resort. He's also wanted by federal prosecutors in New York City, and years-old indictments in San Diego and Texas charge Guzman with masterminding a mammoth cocaine trafficking operation.

The US Justice Department hasn't said whether it plans to seek extradition, allowing only that it will be "the subject of further discussion between the United States and Mexico".

AP

(China Daily 02/26/2014 page12)