Humberto Beltran Cuenalias “Don Chino”an alleged Sinaloa Cartel operator captured in Guatemala in March 2023, pleaded guilty in the United States to the crime of conspiracy to import fentanyl on June 30, according to court documents from the Southern District of New York.
His case is part of a federal investigation that also led to the capture and extradition from Guatemala of other alleged members of the same structure linked to the Los Chapitos faction. The federal indictment describes meetings to negotiate shipments of fentanyl, an exchange of weapons for drugs and mentions Guatemala as part of the Mexican cartel’s operations.
Beltrán Cuen was arrested in Guatemala and later extradited to the United States to face a trial in which Leobardo García Corrales, alias “Leo” is also accused; Martín García Corrales, alias “Tano” or “Cachuchas”; and Anastacio Soto Vega, alias “Tachín”.
The accusation maintains that, between August 2022 and April 2023, the four formed a structure dedicated to international fentanyl trafficking. According to US court documents, Beltrán Cuen’s sentencing hearing was scheduled for September 29, 2026.
Meetings to negotiate fentanyl shipments
The indictment describes several meetings held in Mexico during 2022.
According to the file, between August 26 and 27, 2022, Martín García Corrales and Humberto Beltrán Cuen met in Mazatlán, Mexico, to negotiate shipments of fentanyl destined for the United States.
“During the meetings, Martín García Corrales stated that he and his brother, Leobardo García Corrales, had a long-standing relationship with El Chapo—Joaquín Guzmán— and that they both gave him shelter at their ranch when he first escaped from prison in Mexico,” the document states.
The accusation adds that Beltrán Cuen described Leobardo García Corrales as “one of the most important figures in Sinaloa”.
Later, on September 23, 2022, Beltrán Cuen met again with Martín García Corrales to negotiate the purchase of rifles and grenades. Weeks later, both agreed to pay for those weapons with shipments of fentanyl sent to the United States. Beltrán Cuen was removed from that position as part of the agreement through which he agreed to collaborate with US justice.
The reference to Guatemala
The brothers Leobardo and Martín García Corrales are identified by the United States Department of the Treasury as alleged large-scale traffickers of methamphetamine and fentanyl linked to the faction of Los Chapitos.
According to the file, during a meeting held on September 19, 2022 in Mexico City, Leobardo García Corrales stated that he was moving his drug laboratories to Oaxaca, where they would produce approximately one ton of fentanyl, and that the chemical precursors came from China.
“One of the largest drug laboratories ever seized in Guatemala was a Sinaloa Cartel laboratory belonging to Leobardo García Corrales and his ‘good friend’ El Chapo,” the document states.
Arrests in Guatemala for fentanyl trafficking
The investigation also led to the capture in Guatemala of Ana Gabriela Rubio Zeaalias “La Gaby”and from the Mexican Sergio Duarte Friasarrested on March 17, 2023 in the capital and later extradited.
Both were identified by US authorities as members of the same criminal structure linked to Los Chapitos.
Duarte Frías was sentenced on December 22, 2025 to 33 months in prison after pleading guilty to conspiracy to launder money and import fentanyl.
Rubio Zea was sentenced on January 28, 2026 after accepting a charge of conspiracy to import fentanyl as part of an agreement with the Prosecutor’s Office.