The federal trial against the infamous Mexican drug lord and escape artist Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman is underway – and the kingpin’s former beauty queen wife has been by his side through it all.
American-born mother-of-two Emma Coronel Aispuro, 29, attended the first day of her 61-year-old husband’s trial on Tuesday.
Guzman pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking charges connected to claims that he built a multi-billion-dollar fortune by smuggling cocaine and other drugs across the Mexico-US border.
After years on the run, Guzman was extradited to the United States last year and was held in solitary confinement in a high-security prison as he awaited trial, The Associated Press reported.
Meanwhile, his wife - a former beauty queen - has been living a lavish life in Mexico, according to now-deleted and private Instagram posts seen by The New York Post.
As a teenager, Emma Coronel Aispuro was crowned the local Coffee and Guava Queen in rural Sinaloa, Mexico, where Guzman once led the notorious Sinaloa Cartel.
Source: New York Post
Coronel Aispuro married Guzman on her 18th birthday.
Coronel Aispuro met Guzman, who is more than 30 years her senior, at a party organized by her father, Ines Coronel Barreras, according to The New York Post.
Coronel Barreras is reportedly a member of Guzman's drug empire, the Sinaloa Cartel.
The 29-year-old former beauty queen was born just outside San Francisco while her Mexican mother was visiting relatives.
Source: New York Post
Guzman has been jailed for most of his marriage to Coronel Aispuro.
Guzman was arrested in 2014 after 14 years on the run following an escape from a Mexican prison, according to The Associated Press.
He escaped again in July 2015, and was recaptured in 2016. Guzman was then extradited to the United States in January 2017.
Coronel Aispuro and Guzman's twin daughters were born in 2011.
Guzman reportedly urged Coronel Aispuro to fly to the United States to give birth, according to The New York Post, so they would be US citizens.
When her daughters were born in Lancaster, California, Coronel Aispuro left Guzman's name off the birth certificate
Source: My San Antonio
Coronel Aispuro flew to New York to attend the first day of Guzman's trial.
She was spotted taking off her translator headset as prosecutors outlined the charges against Guzman, according to The New York Post.
Coronel waved and smiled at Guzman in court at the start of his trial, but wasn't allowed to give him a hug.
Guzman had requested that Coronel Aispuro be allowed to hug him before opening arguments during his drug trafficking trial, which started on November 13, according to NBC News.
He had asked for a "brief momentary greeting to include perhaps an embrace," but was denied by the judge.
Still, Coronel Aispuro greeted him with a smile and a wave, The New York Post reported.
It is believed Coronel Aispuro was well aware of Guzman’s status as a drug kingpin.
Source: The Daily Beast
Coronel Aispuro feared for Guzman's life after he was captured by Mexican authorities in 2016.
Source: BBC
In her first public interview in 2016, Coronel Aispuro defended her husband and said Guzman wasn't violent.
Source: Business Insider
Photos of Coronel Aispuro flaunting her wealth have appeared on Instagram — but she said she doesn't run social media accounts.
"I want to clarify that I don't have any social media sites and that I am not the one who is posting those pages," she wrote in her letter to the Mexican press, according to The New York Post.
She added: "I never wanted to be in a situation to have my life exposed. I am not interested in exposing my life in front of millions of people who I don't know."
Coronel Aispuro voiced concern over Guzman’s health ahead of his drug trafficking trial.
In April, Coronel Aispuro said she was concerned for his health and said she hadn't spoken to Guzman in 15 months.
Source: The New York Post