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El Chapo’s Mother Says U.S. Approved Visa to Visit Son in Prison

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Mexico’s president reportedly lobbied for her to be able to visit.

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Edgard Garrido/Reuters

Consuelo Loera, the mother of convicted drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzmán, said Saturday that the U.S. Embassy in Mexico City approved her visa so she can visit her son in prison. U.S. officials have yet to confirm whether the visa was granted. Loera, 91, said she hasn't seen her son in more than four years. “El Chapo” led the Sinaloa drug cartel and twice escaped from Mexican prisons before he was extradited to New York. He was convicted in February of running what prosecutors described as “the largest drug-trafficking organization in the world.” The three-month trial heard tales of grisly killings, political payoffs, and jewel encrusted guns.

Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador reportedly lobbied for Loera's visa to be issued after receiving a letter from her asking for assistance. In the letter, passed to López Obrador while he was in Guzman's home state, Loera described herself as “suffering and desperate” to see her son. She and two daughters were both approved Saturday for visas to travel to the United States. If she is allowed to bring anything to “El Chapo,” she said, she will bring his favorite dish, enchiladas. He is due to be sentenced this month and faces a life term in a maximum-security prison.

Read it at Associated Press

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