Drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman has appeared in a US court after his surprise extradition from Mexico and pleaded not guilty to charges that he ran the world's largest drug-trafficking organisation during a decades-long criminal career.
This picture released by the Mexican government on 19 January shows Joaquin Guzman escorted in Ciudad Juarez by the Mexican police. Photo: AFP
Guzman (whose nickname means "shortie" in Spanish) was one of the world's most wanted drug lords who made dramatic escapes from Mexican prisons twice.
Leading the Sinaloa Cartel, he is alleged to have overseen perhaps the world's largest transnational cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine smuggling operation.
The 59-year-old was accompanied by two lawyers during the appearance in federal court in Brooklyn.
Guzman wore a blue jumpsuit and had no visible expression on his face as he entered the courtroom and listened to questions from a judge.
The indictment in Brooklyn against him, with 17 criminal counts, carries a mandatory minimum sentence of life in prison, Robert Capers, the US attorney for the Eastern District of New York, said at a press conference earlier in the day.
"Who is Chapo Guzman? In short, he's a man known for no other life but a life of crime, violence, death and destruction, and now he'll have to answer to that," Mr Capers said.
US prosecutors have more than 40 witnesses ready to testify against Guzman, Mr Capers said, adding that the eventual trial will likely last "many" weeks.
After US Magistrate Judge James Orenstein asked if he understood the charges against him, Guzman responded through a Spanish interpreter, "well, I didn't know until now".
Later, when asked again, Guzman said he understood.
An additional hearing was scheduled for 3 February.
His lawyers promised a zealous defence to ensure he receives a fair trial, and said they would examine whether Guzman was extradited appropriately.
"I haven't seen any evidence that indicates to me that Mr Guzman's done anything wrong. Most of you probably haven't seen any evidence like that either," federal public defender Michael Schneider told reporters outside the court.
Guzman's extradition came on the eve of Donald Trump's inauguration, a coincidence some officials said was an olive branch to the new US President, who declared he would kick Guzman's "ass" on taking office.
However, the Mexican Attorney-General's office rejected claims the move was related to Mr Trump's swearing-in, noting that Guzman faces pending cases in Mexico following his US sentence.
Guzman arrived in a small jet at Long Island's MacArthur Airport after nightfall on Thursday from a prison in Juarez in Mexico's northern state of Chihuahua, where his cartel rules.
- Reuters
