Mexican President Sheinbaum To Sue Cartel Leader Ovidio Guzman's Lawyer For Defamation

The feud between Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Jeffrey Lichtman, attorney for cartel leader Ovidio Guzmán López, escalated Monday as Sheinbaum told reporters she is preparing a defamation lawsuit against the lawyer.

During her daily press conference, Sheinbaum responded to remarks Lichtman made last week, in which he accused the Mexican government of acting "as the public relations arm of a narco-trafficking organization."

Sheinbaum reiterated that her administration does not engage in relationships of complicity with cartels and ruled out any dialogue with Lichtman.

"First, we will not engage in dialogue with a drug trafficker's lawyer," she said. "Second, we are going to file a defamation lawsuit in Mexico through the Legal Counsel's Office, because this cannot be overlooked."

The clash follows Guzmán López's recent guilty plea to four charges in the U.S., including drug trafficking, money laundering and firearms offenses. Before his arrest, Guzmán López was a key figure in Los Chapitos, a faction of the Sinaloa Cartel led by the sons of Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán.

Sheinbaum has for months criticized U.S. prosecutors for negotiating plea deals with cartel figures like Guzmán López, often calling such actions contradictory considering the Trump administration designated many cartels as terrorist organizations.

"We must emphasize something very important: The United States government recently issued a decree labeling some organized crime groups as terrorist organizations," Sheinbaum said in May. "They have repeatedly stated that they do not negotiate with these groups, so they need to explain why, in these cases, agreements are being made."

The dispute between Sheinbaum and Lichtman began last week, when the president called on the U.S. Department of Justice to share information about Guzmán López's plea deal and the status of Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, another co-founder of the Sinaloa Cartel.

Lichtman dismissed the request as "absurd," arguing the U.S. is not obligated to inform Mexico each time it negotiates with a cartel leader. When asked about the comment, Sheinbaum said the lawyer's statement was disrespectful. Lichtman responded with another attack.

"Apparently the president of Mexico is displeased with my truthful comments about her corrupt office and government," he wrote on X.

In another passage of her press conference, Sheinbaum also called for transparency in the case of former Mexican Defense Secretary Salvador Cienfuegos, who was arrested in the United States in 2020 on charges of cartel ties. The charges were eventually dropped a few weeks later after pressure from the Mexican government.

"It's important that the entire matter be clarified, because it's very clear there was innocence involved," Sheinbaum said. "It's crucial to explain how the case unfolded — from the arrest to the release — and how the Attorney General's Office was involved."

"As for the rest, we're doing our job," she added. "It's not just about what we say. It's about results. We do not establish relationships of collusion with anyone."