Mexican Drug Lord Who Founded Zetas Released from U.S. Prison

Osiel Cardenas, the notorious Mexican drug lord who founded the ultra-violent Zetas cartel, has been released from a U.S. prison after serving over a decade behind bars. Initially captured in 2003 and extradited to the United States in 2007, Cardenas was sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2010.

The Zetas, once an enforcement arm of Cardenas’ Gulf Cartel, became one of the most feared and violent crime syndicates in Mexico, notorious for their brutal methods. Although their influence has waned in recent years, the group was largely responsible for escalating violence, extortion, and kidnapping for ransom across Mexico.

Cardenas was released into the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Friday, though it remains unclear whether he will be deported to Mexico or remain in U.S. custody. According to a U.S. official cited by NBC, the Biden administration is expected to hand Cardenas over to Mexico, where he faces outstanding charges.

Leo Silva, a former U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) agent who fought against the Zetas, noted that Cardenas was a key figure behind the rise in gruesome violence across Mexico. “He unleashed this mentality of creating fear in the country,” Silva said, referencing Cardenas’ role in expanding organized crime’s reach beyond drug trafficking to extortion and terrorizing communities.

Cardenas is currently being held in a U.S. immigration detention center, pending a final decision on his fate.