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Report: Judge involved in "El Chapo" case fatally shot

MEXICO CITY — The Mexican judge who handled several legal challenges filed by lawyers for Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman, as well as other high-profile drug cases, has been fatally shot, Reuters reports.

Judge Vicente Bermudez was shot in the head outside his home Monday, dying soon after. He presided over several cases involving drug kingpins, including recent legal challenges filed by Guzman, the leader of the Sinaloa Cartel, who has filed appeals seeking to prevent his extradition to the United States, where he faces drug-trafficking, money-laundering, weapons and murder charges.

Bermudez worked in a court in the state of México, near Guzman’s Altiplano prison. He also presided over motions filed by Miguel Trevino, the ex-leader of the Zetas cartel.

Reuters reports that President Enrique Pena Nieto said in a speech Monday that he has ordered his attorney general to investigate the murder.

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