El Chapo the fashionista: Drug lord creates clothing line behind bars
The 61-year-old kingpin, real name is Joquin Guzman, is working with his wife Emma Coronel Aispuro, 29, on the sartorial project.
Saturday 30 March 2019 10:01, UK
Convicted drug lord El Chapo is sidestepping into fashion by creating an eponymous clothing brand inspired by his twin daughters.
The 61-year-old kingpin, whose real name is Joquin Guzman, is working with his wife Emma Coronel Aispuro, 29, on the sartorial project.
The El Chapo-branded clothing will feature the drug lord's name and signature and could soon become available in the US and Mexico.
Guzman signed a contract from his cell in a Manhattan federal prison granting the rights to his name and signature to a limited liability company, or LLC, that will be headed up by his wife.
Attorney Mariel Colon Miro said the company is officially called El Chapo Guzman and will launch a line of caps this summer, which will be followed by ready-to-wear.
Ms Aispuro, a former beauty pageant queen, said the clothing line was inspired by their seven-year-old twin daughters.
"This project is an idea Joaquin and I have had for a long time. Before he was in the USA we talked a lot about this topic," she told New York Daily News.
"Really, it's both of our ideas [....] We'll talk a little about both of our ideas-that he has and a touch of mine, obviously. Our greatest inspiration is our daughters."
The Mexican former leader of the murderous crime syndicate Sinaloa Cartel is nicknamed El Chapo - "shorty" in Spanish - because of his 5ft 6in stature.
He is considered to have been the most powerful drug trafficker in the world and was found guilty in February of drug trafficking, money laundering and firearms possession.
Guzman, who was recaptured by Mexican authorities following a shoot-out in 2016, is expected to be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole in June.
Ms Aispuro often attended her husband's trial, with her fashion choices in court drawing a lot of media attention.
Guzman will not earn any money from the fashion line himself despite agreeing to give the intellectual property rights of his name and signature to the LLC, according to Michael Lambert, another attorney who has worked with him.