The wife of Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman was arrested Monday on international trafficking charges.
Emma Coronel Aispuro, 31, was arrested in Virginia on charges of participating in a conspiracy to distribute cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, and marijuana for importation into the U.S., federal prosecutors said.
Coronel, the mother of twin daughters with Guzman, was apprehended at Dulles International Airport. She was scheduled to appear by video conference Tuesday before a judge in Washington, D.C., per the New York Post.
Prosecutors alleged not only was Coronel aware of her husband's role as the Sinaloa cartel leader, she also served as Guzman's liaison in his drug trafficking operation.
When Guzman was hiding from Mexican authorities between 2012-14, she allegedly "relayed messages" on his behalf "in furtherance of drug trafficking activities," according to an arrest affidavit.
Coronel, known as "La Reinita" or the little queen, allegedly continued to deliver messages after Guzman was arrested in Mexico in February 2014.
Coronel also was accused of helping plan her husband's escape from Mexico's Altiplano prison via an underground tunnel in July 11, 2015. She allegedly worked on organizing construction of the mile long, lighted passage with Guzman's sons and a witness, who's now cooperating with the feds.
A dual U.S.-Mexico citizen, Coronel married Guzman in 2007. The brunette was a former teenage beauty queen who appeared on the VH1 reality-TV show "Cartel Crew" in November 2019.
She loyally attended Guzman's 2018-19 trial in New York, where he was sentenced to life in prison. She sometimes wore matching outfits with her hubby even though testimony included news of his mistresses and how he spied on his wife's cellphone.
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