Mexico is investigating whether the United States violated Mexican sovereignty during the 2024 capture of Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada, following allegations that U.S. agencies participated in the operation. President Claudia Sheinbaum stated that everything seems to indicate that U.S. Ambassador Ken Salazar lied.

Ismael "El Mayo" Zambada was arrested in the United States in July 2024, alongside Joaquin Guzman Lopez. Zambada pleaded guilty to federal charges in August 2024 related to his role as a co-founder of the Sinaloa cartel. The federal charges included drug trafficking, gun offenses, and money laundering. Federal prosecutors alleged that Zambada and other Sinaloa cartel leaders were responsible for distributing massive quantities of heroin, cocaine, fentanyl, and other illegal drugs into the U.S.

Joaquin Guzman Lopez, son of Sinaloa cartel co-founder Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, is imprisoned in the United States. He pleaded guilty to U.S. narcotrafficking charges in December 2024. In his plea deal, Guzman Lopez admitted to kidnapping Zambada to bring him to the United States. Details in the plea deal indicate that Zambada was ambushed, loaded onto a plane, drugged, and transported across the border to the United States.

The U.S. Embassy in Mexico stated in 2024 that no U.S. agency had participated in the operation to capture Ismael Zambada. President Sheinbaum said, "If one of the U.S. agencies participated in this operation, they would be violating international treaties and the (Mexican) constitution." Mexican government secretary Rosa Icela Rodriguez also commented on the conflicting accounts, stating, "The versions are contradictory. Someone lied." She also questioned the nature of any potential agreements, asking, "What agreements did that agency have, or who else participated with the criminal group?"