A mugshot has been released of drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman’s wife after she was charged with drug trafficking.
Emma Coronel Aispuro, 31, appeared in court on Tuesday accused of helping her husband run his drug empire while he was behind bars.
The former beauty queen faces up to life in prison and a potential fine of up to $10million (£7million) if convicted of all charges.
El Chapo, 63, was convicted in New York, US in 2019 for his role as a leader of the powerful Sinaloa Cartel.
His wife was arrested at Dulles International Airport, outside Washington DC, on Monday.
(Image: Alexandria Sheriff’s Office via)
Authorities released a picture of her after her arrest, which shows her pouting at the camera.
The dual US-Mexico citizen, who lives in Mexico, appeared in a federal court in Washington for an initial hearing.
A judge ordered her to remain in custody.
Prosecutors said she grew up understanding the drug business and the reach of the Sinaloa cartel.
A government lawyer said: “This defendant worked closely with the command and control structure of the Mexican drug trafficking organisation known as the Sinaloa cartel.”
(Image: AFP/Getty Images)
She is charged with conspiring to distribute cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin and marijuana for importation into the US.
And she is also accused of conspiring to assist her husband in his escape from Altiplano prison in Mexico through a mile-long tunnel dug from his cell in July 2015.
Court documents claim she was involved in plotting a second attempted jail break in 2016 before El Chapo was extradited to the US.
(Image: AFP/Getty Images)
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Authorities said she relayed messages to help El Chapo conduct drug trafficking from 2012 to early 2014.
They say she continued delivering messages while visiting him in a Mexican prison following his February 2014 arrest.
She married El Chapo as an 18-year-old beauty queen in 2007 and they have twin daughters.
In 2019 she launched a clothing brand in America and also appeared in a US reality show about mafia families.
El Chapo was found guilty of masterminding a multibillion dollar drug enterprise and engaging in multiple murder conspiracies.
He was sentenced to life in prison plus 30 years, and locked up in the federal Supermax jail in Florence, Colorado.
