Néstor Isidro Pérez Salas, also known as "El Nini," a prominent figure in the Sinaloa cartel, has been extradited to the United States. Pérez Salas, who was among America's most-wanted
criminals for his alleged involvement in the fentanyl trade, faces numerous charges, including drug trafficking, murder, and kidnapping.
El Nini held a key leadership role in the security apparatus of the Chapitos, a faction of the Sinaloa cartel led by the sons of Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzmán. Working directly under Iván Archivaldo Guzmán Salazar’s deputy, Oscar Noé Medina González, Pérez Salas was responsible for cartel security in Sinaloa and led a particularly violent group known as the "Ninis."
In a statement celebrating the extradition, President Joe Biden praised the collaboration between US and Mexican authorities. “El Nini played a prominent role in the notorious Sinaloa cartel, one of the deadliest drug trafficking enterprises in the world. The United States has charged him for his role in illicit fentanyl trafficking and for murdering, torturing, and kidnapping numerous rivals, witnesses, and others,” Biden said, thanking Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador for his cooperation.
Biden emphasized the ongoing partnership between the two countries to combat the fentanyl and synthetic drug epidemic, which has claimed countless lives both domestically and globally. “Our governments will continue to work together to bring to justice the criminals and organizations producing, smuggling, and selling these lethal poisons,” he added.
According to the US Department of Justice, Pérez Salas was one of the Sinaloa cartel’s leading sicarios, or assassins, deeply involved in the production and distribution of fentanyl within the United States. Previously described by Biden as one of America's most-wanted criminals, Pérez Salas was charged in February 2021 with conspiracy to traffic cocaine and methamphetamine, possession of machine guns and destructive devices, and witness retaliation.
The US State Department had offered a reward of up to $3 million for information leading to his arrest. Pérez Salas was detained in Mexico in November of the previous year.
Pérez Salas' close collaboration with Oscar Noé Medina González, a key figure in the Chapitos' operations, further underscores his significant role within the cartel. The State Department highlighted his responsibility for the cartel's security operations and leadership of the Ninis, noted for their extreme violence.
US Attorney General Merrick Garland expressed gratitude to the Mexican government for their efforts in apprehending and extraditing El Nini. “The Justice Department will continue to go after the cartels responsible for flooding our communities with fentanyl and other drugs,” Garland stated. Photo by Dickelbers, Wikimedia commons.