American investigators will see into a meeting between Hollywood actor Sean Penn and the newly-recaptured drug kingpin, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman, which drew criticism from press and some politicians after an interview with the Sinaola cartel boss was published in the Rolling Stones magazine.
US government sources speaking on condition of anonymity told Reuters on Monday that Penn would not be forced to provide information to authorities in regard to the meeting with the drug lord.
El Chapo, who was on the run after escaping from Mexico’s maximum security Altiplano prison in July 2015, sat for an interview with Penn and Mexican actress Kate del Castillo in October.
Reportedly arranged by Castillo, the rendezvous took place in a remote part of the northwestern Durango state.
After the drug kingpin was captured on Friday, the Rolling Stones rushed to publish the interview, which outraged the press community.
Meanwhile, an open investigation continued in Mexico over meeting with a runaway criminal, the country’s attorney general said Monday.
The Oscar-winning actor has reacted by saying that he has "nothin' to hide."
However, there is still a "very strong possibility that Penn and Del Castillo are going to have to testify," according to Mike Vigil, former DEA chief of international operations.
Mexican authorities, meanwhile, released footage of a dramatic raid by marine forces, which led to Guzman’s capture at a hotel in Los Mochis.
Asked by the US to extradite the boss of the powerful Sinaloa drug cartel, Mexico is taking advantage by pressuring Washington to find out more about the rendezvous, which Mexican authorities say had an "essential" role in the drug lord’s arrest.
The government of Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto had rebuffed US demands for El Chapo’s extradition prior to his second prison break.
Even if it is approved by Mexican authorities, the extradition could take months.
El Chapo shocked the world last summer when he stepped into the shower at his cell in the most secure wing of the maximum security Almoloya prison in full view of a video camera and vanished into what guards later discovered was a small hole in the shower’s floor, leading to a mile-long tunnel.