FILE – In Nov. 13, 2018 file courtroom drawing, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, center, sits next to his defense attorney Eduardo Balarezo, left, for opening statements as Guzman’s high-security trial gets underway in the Brooklyn borough of New York. Guzman is due in court Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2019, for the prosecution’s summation at a trial that began late in 2018, after Guzman was brought to the U.S. to face drug-trafficking charges. (Elizabeth Williams via AP)
NEW YORK (AP) — A U.S. jury is set to hear closing arguments at the high-profile trial of the Mexican drug lord known as El Chapo.
Joaquin Guzman was due in court Wednesday for the prosecution’s summation at a trial that began late last year after Guzman was brought to the U.S. to face drug-trafficking charges.
Jurors have heard from more than 50 witnesses who testifed about Guzman’s rise to power as a cartel boss in his home state of Sinaloa. He was accused of making a fortune by smuggling tons of cocaine to America and using deadly violence and bribery to protect his turf.
The defense insistes the allegations are fabricated. One of Guzman’s lawyers will give a defense closing Thursday.
Guzman would face life in prison if convicted.
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