Kate Del Castillo: Free To Travel To Mexico?

Mexican-American actress Kate del Castillo, known for her roles in popular telenovelas like 'Muchachitas' and 'La Mentira', has had a successful career spanning almost four decades. However, her meeting with Mexican drug lord Joaquín El Chapo Guzmán in 2015, alongside actor Sean Penn, led to legal troubles that prevented her from returning to Mexico for three years. Del Castillo was investigated for money laundering, but the case was suspended in 2017 due to a lack of evidence. A Mexican judge granted her an injunction against arrest, but a detain-and-interrogate order was also issued, restricting her travel to Mexico. The situation impacted her work, as she had to film scenes in the US or Colombia while using body doubles and special effects for Mexico-based shoots. In 2018, del Castillo returned to Mexico, proudly presenting her Mexican passport upon entry.

Kate del Castillo's relationship with El Chapo

Kate del Castillo's relationship with Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, the infamous head of the Sinaloa Cartel, began with a series of tweets in 2012. In her tweets, del Castillo stated that she trusted El Chapo more than the Mexican government and asked the Sinaloa boss to "traffic in love".

El Chapo was a longtime fan of del Castillo, who was known for her starring roles in popular telenovelas like "Muchachitas" and "La Mentira". He took note of her tweets and became obsessed with the idea of turning his life story into a movie, with del Castillo as the star. The first contact between the two was in 2014 when El Chapo was in custody. From there, the actress and the drug lord, with his lawyers as intermediaries, began a correspondence that was closely followed by the authorities.

In 2015, del Castillo met with El Chapo's lawyers in Mexico to discuss the movie project. She was under surveillance by the Mexican government at this time. She received a cell phone and the code names "Hermosa" and "Dama" from El Chapo. Through these communications, she brokered a meeting between American actor Sean Penn and El Chapo in October 2015, shortly before Mexican Marines recaptured him.

Del Castillo has always maintained that her relationship with El Chapo was strictly for the purpose of making a movie about his life. She was investigated by the Mexican government for money laundering and her ties to the drug lord, but no charges were ever filed. The investigation took a toll on her personally and professionally, and she was unable to return to Mexico for almost three years.

The Mexican government's investigation into del Castillo

The Mexican government's investigation into Kate del Castillo's relationship with Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, the head of the Sinaloa cartel, lasted 17 months. The probe began after an anonymous email alerted authorities that del Castillo was planning to meet with El Chapo, as she wanted to make a movie about his life.

The Mexican Attorney General's Office (PGR) deployed wiretaps, detectives, tax audits, witness statements, and the cooperation of the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to investigate del Castillo. They sought to charge her with crimes including organized crime and concealment, based on her exchanges and her meeting with El Chapo. However, the evidence failed to link del Castillo to the Sinaloa cartel or prove that El Chapo's money funded her tequila brand.

During the investigation, authorities wiretapped del Castillo's communications with El Chapo and his lawyer, which included comments such as "we're in business" and "we're in this together." They also tailed her to a hotel restaurant, where she met with one of El Chapo's lawyers, and intercepted fragments of their exchange, including del Castillo saying it would "be an honor" to be El Chapo's partner.

The investigation into del Castillo was ultimately closed in February 2017, with the public prosecutor deciding not to bring any criminal action against her. It was concluded that there was no proof of del Castillo's involvement with the Sinaloa cartel or that she intended to form part of the criminal organization. The only thing confirmed by the evidence was del Castillo's interest in making a movie about El Chapo, which was not considered an unlawful activity.

Following the investigation, del Castillo sued the former Mexican government for $60 million in moral and material damages, claiming that she was a victim of an "unjustified" and "illegal" probe. She accused the administration of former President Enrique Pena Nieto of damaging her reputation by leaking false information about her relationship with El Chapo, which caused her to lose acting work and other business opportunities.

Del Castillo's fear of arrest in Mexico

Mexican-American actress Kate del Castillo's fear of arrest in Mexico was not unfounded. In 2015, she was investigated by the Mexican government for her relationship with Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, the head of the Sinaloa cartel. Del Castillo had publicly expressed her admiration for El Chapo, and her desire to see him use his power and influence for good. She also posted an essay on Twitter, in which she stated that she trusted El Chapo more than the Mexican government. This naturally attracted the attention of the authorities, who kept a close eye on her.

Del Castillo's fears were realised when, in 2016, a Mexican judge granted her petition for an injunction against any arrest related to the federal investigation into her ties with El Chapo. The Mexican Attorney General had issued a detain-and-interrogate order on del Castillo, which would only become effective if she set foot on Mexican soil. This order was issued after she did not voluntarily appear before Mexican prosecutors to testify as a witness about her ties to the drug lord.

Del Castillo's fears were not assuaged until 2018, when she returned to Mexico after a three-year exile in Los Angeles. She had been investigated for 17 months by the Mexican government, who deployed wiretaps, detectives, tax audits, witness statements, and the cooperation of the US Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) to try and charge her with crimes including organised crime and concealment. However, the investigation found no evidence of her involvement with the Sinaloa cartel, or that El Chapo's money was behind a tequila brand she promoted.

The investigation caused a media frenzy, with prosecutors leaking messages and details of the case to the press, leading to speculation about the nature of Del Castillo's relationship with El Chapo. Ultimately, no criminal action was brought against her, and she was granted protection from arrest by a Mexican judge.

Del Castillo's return to Mexico in 2018

Mexican-American actress Kate del Castillo returned to Mexico in December 2018, after three years of self-imposed exile in Los Angeles. Del Castillo had been living in the US since 2015, when she was wanted by Mexican authorities for her relationship with Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán, the country's most notorious drug lord.

Del Castillo first met El Chapo in 2015, after a series of secret text messages. She had expressed admiration for him on Twitter in 2012, and he had become a fan of hers after seeing her play a drug lord in the telenovela *La Reina del Sur*. In 2014, after El Chapo was recaptured, his lawyers reached out to Del Castillo to offer her the rights to his life story for a film or television project. She jumped at the chance, and the pair began communicating via text message. In October 2015, she brokered a meeting between El Chapo and American actor Sean Penn, which helped Mexican authorities to trace and recapture the drug lord.

Del Castillo was investigated by the Mexican government for money laundering, which she vehemently denied, and claimed the investigation was a "witch hunt" by the government of then-President Enrique Peña Nieto, whom she had criticised in the past. She was also unpopular with Nieto's Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) because she had campaigned for an opposition candidate in the 2000 presidential election. In February 2016, a Mexican judge granted Del Castillo an injunction against any arrest related to the federal investigation. However, the Mexican Attorney General issued a detain-and-interrogate order, which would become effective if she returned to Mexico.

During her exile, Del Castillo continued to work, starring in Netflix's *Ingobernable* and filming her scenes in California, while a body double took her place for location shots in Mexico. She also starred in the second season of *La Reina del Sur*, which was released after her return to Mexico for Christmas in 2018, following the election of a new president.

Del Castillo's career and roles

Kate del Castillo, born in Mexico City, Mexico, is a Mexican-American actress. She is the daughter of Kate Trillo Graham and Eric del Castillo, a Mexican cinema legend and soap opera actor. Del Castillo made her acting debut in 1978 with the film 'The Last Escape'. At the age of 19, she rose to fame for her lead role in the telenovela 'Muchachitas' for Televisa in 1991. Following this, she continued her career in film and television in Latin America, playing leading roles in telenovelas like 'Alguna vez tendremos alas' (1997), 'La Mentira' (1998), 'Ramona' (2000), and 'Bajo la misma piel' (2003-2004).

In 2003, del Castillo made her American television debut with a recurring role in the PBS drama series 'American Family', starring alongside Edward James Olmos and Sônia Braga. In 2009, she played a powerful Mexican politician, Pilar Zuazo, in the Showtime dark comedy-drama series 'Weeds'. In 2011, del Castillo earned worldwide recognition for her role in the Telemundo series 'La Reina del Sur', which was renewed for a second season in 2019. She also starred in several Hollywood films, including 'Under the Same Moon' (2007), 'No Good Deed' (2014), 'The 33' (2015), 'El Chicano' (2019), and 'Bad Boys for Life' (2020).

In 2017, del Castillo starred in the Netflix political drama series 'Ingobernable', playing the fictional First Lady of Mexico, Emilia Urquiza. She also appeared in American television shows like 'CSI: Miami', 'Grimm', 'Dallas', and 'Jane the Virgin'. In 2019, she made her off-Broadway debut in the Audible Theater production of Isaac Gomez's play 'The Way She Spoke', earning nominations for three theatre awards in New York. In 2022, she starred in the Peacock comedy-drama series, 'Til Jail Do Us Part', and in 2024, she joined the cast of the Fox series 'The Cleaning Lady'.

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