Documents Claim Drug Lord 'El Chapo' Guzman Abused Minors
Newly unsealed documents claim notorious drugs lord 'El Chapo' had sex with minors.
It is alleged he called them 'vitamins' as a jury is about to start deliberating in his U.S. drug-trafficking case.
Released papers claim a key government cooperator told authorities Guzman had him drug girls as young as 13 before the drugs dealer had sex with them at one of his Mexican hideouts in the late 2000s.
His lawyers called the accusations "extremely salacious" and questioned the timing of the government filing.
The drugs lord "denies the allegations, which lack any corroboration and were deemed too prejudicial and unreliable to be admitted at trial," attorney Eduardo Balarezo said in a statement.
He added: "It is unfortunate that the material was publicly released just prior to the jury beginning deliberations."
The jury is set to begin deliberations Monday after a nearly three-month trial on charges that Guzman was head of the Sinaloa cartel.
It is alleged that he oversaw a drug-smuggling empire that flooded the U.S. market with at least 200 tons (181 metric tons) of cocaine and made $14 billion off of it.
The unsealing of the documents came at the request of The New York Times and Vice News.
U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan had ordered prosecutors to review the material contained.
One document says Colombian drug trafficker Alex Cifuentes, while living with Guzman around 2007, told investigators someone known as Comadre Maria would offer photos of young girls to Guzman.
For $5,000, the one of Guzman's choice, would be sent to a secluded Sinaloa ranch, Cifuentes alleges, according to the papers.
Guzman directed Cifuentes to put a "powdery substance" into the girls' drinks before sex, said Cifuentes.
The drugs lord "called the youngest of the girls his 'vitamins' because he believed that sexual activity with young girls gave him 'life,'" he added.
Cifuentes also admitted having sex with minors but without drugging them.
The document says other cooperating witnesses have backed up the claims about Guzman's interactions with underage girls.
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