A U.S. judge sentenced mexico's drug lord , The Short" Guzman, to three years in prison on Tuesday after pleading guilty to helping a Sinaloa drug cartel, Reuters reported on November 30.
Emma Coronel Espero Source: Visual China
Before the verdict was handed down in federal court in Washington, Emma Coronel Aispuro, 32, asked U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras for forgiveness.
"I speak to you today to express my sincere apologies for any harm I may have caused, and I ask you and all the citizens of this country to forgive me," she said.
She also said she feared the judge might have a hard time forgiving her because she was Guzman's wife. "Maybe for that reason you feel the need to be tougher on me, but I pray you don't." She added.
In June, Coronel pleaded guilty to three counts, including conspiracy to distribute illegal drugs, conspiracy to launder money, and financial transactions with Sinaloa drug cartels.
On Tuesday, federal prosecutors demanded a four-year prison sentence for Coronel, adding that she would be confiscated $1.5 million.
"While the overall impact of the defendant's conduct is significant, the actual role of the defendant is minimal. The defendant's conduct was primarily to support her husband. Federal prosecutor Anthony Nardozzi said.
He noted that after Coronel's arrest, she "quickly took responsibility for her own crimes."
Coronell, a former American-born beauty pageant, married Guzman as a teenager and bore guzman a pair of 9-year-old twin daughters. In February, she was arrested at Dulles International Airport outside Washington.
As part of a plea deal with U.S. prosecutors, Coronell admitted that guzman was held in Mexico's Aldiplano prison after his arrest in 2014 and that she had served as a messenger between Guzman and other members of the Sinaloa drug cartel.
Guzman used the intelligence she passed on to escape in 2015 through an underground tunnel built by a drug cartel that led to the bathroom in his cell.
In January 2016, the absconding Guzman was recaptured and extradited to the United States a year later. In February 2019, he was convicted of drug trafficking, kidnapping, murder and subsequently sentenced to life in prison.
Guzman Source: Visual China
Mr. Coronell's lawyer stressed Tuesday that she was drawn into the world of drug smuggling as a minor and deserved leniency. "She met Guzman when she was a minor, she was 17 at the time, and married him on her 18th birthday." Defense attorney Jeffrey Lichtman said.
Judge Contreras said he considered Coronel's background when considering the verdict and that she would be the sole guardian of the children as a result of her husband's life sentence.
(Editor: ZLQ)