Drug kingpin Guzman U.S. extradition eyed for early 2017

PanARMENIAN.Net - Mexico aims to extradite drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman to the United States by February, a senior official said Friday, October 17 but his lawyer promised to "fight to the end," AFP reports.

"We hope (to do it) in January or February," National Security Commissioner Renato Sales Heredia told TV network Televisa, giving Mexico's clearest estimate yet of when it could send the imprisoned Sinaloa cartel chief across the border.

Guzman's lawyer Jose Refugio Rodriguez countered: "He can have his own personal opinion. I think it will be very difficult for it to happen between now and January."

Refugio Rodriguez told Televisa that his client has instructed him to "fight to the end" and that he can win the case if it "is not handled politically."

The foreign ministry approved Guzman's extradition in May, but the man who was once considered the world's most powerful drug trafficker has filed court injunctions.

A judge began reviewing the case on September 26 and it is unclear when he will issue his ruling. Guzman can appeal a decision against him in a higher court.

Guzman is facing two extradition bids, one in California for drug distribution and another in Texas on charges that include murder and money laundering.