SEDENA Officially Denies El Guano Capture; El Chapo's Brother Evades Major Federal Operation for Fourth Time

Mexico's Defense Ministry (SEDENA) officially denied on April 23, 2026 that Aureliano 'El Guano' Guzmán Loera was among those captured in the previous day's federal operation in Badiraguato and the Golden Triangle — confirming he remained at large. García Harfuch had confirmed 'detainees' on April 22, but their identities were withheld. The five-helicopter operation — involving Black Hawks, Beechcraft T-6s, National Guard, and Marine elements — represented one of the largest federal security deployments into the Golden Triangle in recent memory, yet the primary target escaped. An Infobae follow-up on April 23 documented the strategic significance of the Triángulo Dorado as the zone El Guano controls, and his documented pattern of evading previous federal interdiction attempts. El Guano defected from Los Chapitos to support La Mayiza shortly after the September 9, 2024 offensive, becoming a significant asset in the sierra zone with control over both drug production and fuel-theft (huachicol) revenue. His continued presence at large in the Golden Triangle underscores the limits of federal enforcement in the most rugged terrain of the Sinaloa theater. Latin Times confirmed he remained at large based on official statements from Sinaloa authorities.