Profile of Sinaloa Cartel's Secret Pilot Mauro Núñez Ojeda

Mauro Alberto Núñez Ojeda, known by the alias "Jando," recognized as the air force commander of Mexico's Sinaloa drug cartel, used the plane that transported El Chapo's son Joaquín Guzmán López and cartel co-founder Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada to the U.S. in July 2024. This flight led to the arrest of both men, while the pilot was released and returned to Mexico. However, recent court documents and sources reveal that Jando was actually one of the Chapitos faction's most trusted pilots and managed the cartel's aircraft fleet.

Jando started working for the cartel in his youth as a low-level drug courier, later received pilot training in Culiacán, and played a key role in the cartel's logistical operations by landing on clandestine airstrips in the Sierra Madre mountains. Since 2014, he operated across Latin America, including Costa Rica and Ecuador, flew helicopters, and was tasked with managing the cartel's aircraft fleet along with a team of mechanics and pilots. Thanks to his charisma and skill within the organization, he rose to the inner circle of still-fugitive cartel leader Iván Archivaldo Guzmán Salazar.

During the July 2024 flight, Zambada was strapped into his seat and thought he would be thrown from the plane on suspicion of theft, but Guzmán López took him to the U.S. aiming to reduce his own sentence. Snacks from the Oxxo convenience store chain and evidence that Zambada was handcuffed were found on the plane. Jando's exact role in this operation is still under investigation, but sources suggest he could become a cooperator targeting other cartel leaders.