Osiel Cárdenas Guillén

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Cárdenas and the second or maternal family name is Guillén.

Osiel Cárdenas Guillén
Born (1967-05-18) 18 May 1967
Matamoros, Tamaulipas, Mexico
Known forGulf Cartel leader
Criminal statusImprisoned
ConvictionsConspiracy to possess cocaine and marijuana with intent to distribute (21 U.S.C. §§ 841 and 846)
Conspiracy to commit money laundering (18 U.S.C. § 1956)
Threatening to assault and murder federal agents (18 U.S.C. §§ 2 and 115) (3 counts)
Criminal penalty25 years imprisonment
Imprisoned atADX Florence -> USP Florence High -> USP Lewisburg -> USP Terre Haute[1] -> Federal Social Readaptation Center No. 1

Osiel Cárdenas Guillén (born 18 May 1967) is a former Mexican drug lord and the former top leader of the Gulf Cartel and Los Zetas. Originally a mechanic in Matamoros, Tamaulipas, he entered the cartel by killing Juan García Abrego's friend and competitor Salvador Gómez, after the former's arrest in 1996. As confrontations with rival groups heated up, Osiel Cárdenas sought and recruited over 30 deserters from the Grupo Aeromóvil de Fuerzas Especiales to form the cartel's armed wing.[2] Los Zetas served as the hired private mercenary army of the Gulf Cartel.

After a shootout with the Mexican military in 2003, Cárdenas was arrested and imprisoned. In 2007 he was extradited to the U.S. and in 2010 he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for money laundering, drug trafficking, and for having threatened two U.S. federal agents in 1999.[3][4] His brother, Mario Cárdenas Guillén, worked for the Gulf Cartel, as did another brother, Antonio Cárdenas Guillén, who was killed by Mexican Marines on 5 November 2010. Osiel Cárdenas Guillén was imprisoned at USP Terre Haute and was released on 30 August 2024.[5] His inmate number was 62604–079.[6] In December 2024, he was returned to Mexico and arrested. He is incarcerated in the maximum-security Altiplano prison outside Mexico City.

  1. ^ "Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator". Federal Bureau of Prisons. United States Department of Justice. Retrieved 17 April 2020. BOP Register Number: 62604-079
  2. ^ "'Los Zetas' se salen de control". El Universal. Archived from the original on 25 April 2012. Retrieved 1 December 2011.
  3. ^ "El origen de 'Los Zetas': brazo armado del cártel del Golfo". CNNMéxico (in Spanish). 5 July 2011. Archived from the original on 28 January 2013. Retrieved 9 May 2012.
  4. ^ "FindLaw's United States Fifth Circuit case and opinions". Findlaw. Retrieved 1 March 2022.
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference release was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ "Federal Bureau of Prisons Inmate Locator". Federal Bureau of Prisons. United States Department of Justice. Retrieved 17 April 2020. BOP Register Number: 62604-079
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