He was born in the countryside of the Mexican state of Sinaloa, entered the drug trade as a teenager and presides over what many believe is the hemisphere's largest drug trafficking operation. But unlike recently recaptured drug lord Joaqun El Chapo Guzmn Loera, he isnt a household name.

Ismael El Mayo Zambada Garca, the man many believe to have the most control over the Sinaloa cartel, has spent five decades in the drug trade . While El Chapo is widely described as the cartels leader, that notion obscures the fact that Sinaloa operates more like a federation with multiple leaders who form something analogous to a board of directors.

Within that group, Zambada, 68, has likely risen to become the most powerful player. Unlike Guzmn, El Mayo Zambada hasnt been sidelined by yearslong stints in prison.