The sentencing of Mexican drug lord Ismael 'Mayo' Zambada, former co-leader of the Sinaloa cartel, has been postponed to 18 May, according to court documents obtained by French news agency AFP.
Originally scheduled for Monday at a federal court in Brooklyn, New York, the hearing had already been delayed previously.
The 78-year-old has been incarcerated in the United States since July 2024. He pleaded guilty in August 2025 to several charges tied to his leadership role within the criminal organisation.
In a deal with US authorities, Zambada’s guilty plea spared him the possibility of facing the death penalty.
Once a close associate of Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman, Zambada claims he was betrayed by one of Guzman’s four sons, who allegedly coerced him into boarding a private plane that delivered him to US authorities.
After Zambada’s arrest, violent clashes erupted in Mexico between rival factions of the Sinaloa cartel—those loyal to the Guzman brothers and those allied with Zambada. The confrontations have resulted in hundreds of deaths and disappearances.
Two of Guzman’s sons are currently in US custody and cooperating with authorities. The other two are fugitives and are believed to be leading their faction of the cartel.
