The Mexican drug lord Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, who was arrested in the USA last week, was kidnapped, claims his lawyer.
Zambada's lawyer Frank Perez states that his client was kidnapped by Joaquín Guzmán López, who is one of the sons of the imprisoned cartel boss "El Chapo".
"He was ambushed, thrown to the ground, and handcuffed by Joaquín and six men in military uniforms," says Perez in a statement.
Zambada was then allegedly forced into a vehicle and taken to an airport where he was strapped into an airplane seat and flown to the USA, according to the lawyer.
Guzmán López was arrested along with Zambada by American authorities when their plane landed in New Mexico, USA, on Thursday.
Perez refuses to comment further on possible motives behind the incident, but emphasizes that Zambada has not cooperated with the authorities.
Zambada is accused of having controlled the Sinaloa cartel's smuggling of the synthetic opioid fentanyl. The drug is responsible for around 70 percent of the USA's fatal overdoses.
Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzmán has been serving a life sentence in the USA since earlier.
