Suspected Mexican drug cartel leader extradited to US

An alleged leader of Mexico's Sinaloa cartel arrived in San Diego after being extradited to the United States from the Netherlands, AFP reports.

Under heavy security, Jose Rodrigo Arechiga-Gamboa, also known as "Chino Antrax," was flown into San Diego from Amsterdam by the United States Marshals Service and the Drug Enforcement Administration, the Justice Department said.

He was taken into federal custody on charges of conspiracy to distributed controlled substances for importation and conspiracy to import controlled substances.

Arechiga-Gamboa is due to be arraigned Friday at 2:00 pm (1800 GMT) by Magistrate Judge Mitchell Dembin.

According to documents filed by prosecutors, Arechiga-Gamboa worked as a bodyguard for the Sinaloa cartel and the leader of an enforcement group called "Los Antrax."

He allegedly provided security for narcotics shipments and conducted enforcement operations, rising gradually to be come "one of the highest-level leaders" of the cartel, according to the Justice Department.

A federal grand jury in San Diego returned an indictment against Arechiga-Gamboa on December 20, after which the court clerk issued a sealed warrant for his arrest.

He was then arrested on December 30 at Amsterdam's Schiphol Airport at the request of the United States.

Arechiga-Gamboa was traveling under a fraudulent name from Mexico City, having undergone "significant" plastic surgery and tried to change his fingerprints, the Justice Department said, saying US law enforcement officials confirmed his identity through unspecified forensic techniques.

The indictment was unsealed in San Diego on January 3.