A judge in Mexico has temporarily halted the extradition of cartel boss Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman to the U.S. after his lawyers filed appeals, BBC News reports.

Mexico agreed to transfer Guzman in May after the U.S. guaranteed he would not face the death penalty.

But the ruling means it could be months or even years before he is sent to the U.S. , where he faces murder and drug smuggling charges.

Guzman is being held in a maximum security prison near the U.S. border.

He was arrested in January after six months on the run following his escape through a tunnel in his jail cell. He had already escaped a maximum security facility once before, spending 13 years at large.

One of the appeals argues that the statute of limitations has run out on some crimes Guzman is accused of in the U.S. , his lawyer Jose Refugio Rodriguez told Associated Press.

Guzman's defence also argues some of the accusations lack direct evidence.