DEA Statement On Capture Of El Chapo Guzman

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto announced the capture of Guzman using his Twitter account: “Mission accomplished: we have him”.

A Mexican navy marine inspects an open manhole after the recapture of Mexico’s most wanted drug lord, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman in the city of Los Mochis, Mexico, Friday, Jan. 8, 2016. “The easiest thing would be to swiftly extradite “Chapo” Guzman and, once again, the Mexican state shows that it doesn’t have the strength to punish those who commit crimes in our territory”, Barbosa said.

Guzman shocked the world last summer when he stepped into the shower at his cell, in the most secure wing of the prison he was being kept in, in full view of a video camera and vanished into what guards later discovered was a small hole in the shower’s floor.

Authorities first arrested Guzman in Guatemala in 1993.

Mexico said after the 2014 capture of the cartel boss that he would be tried in his home country first, with officials promising they would hang on to him.

Still, many people in towns and villages across Mexico remember Guzman better for his squads of armed gunmen who carried out thousands of brutal slayings and kidnappings.

Prior to his arrest, the notorious fugitive had even got as far as contacting actresses and producers for the film, it has emerged.

The cartel chief known for his daring escapes from high-security prisons was caught early on Friday thanks in large part to his efforts aimed at producing a biopic about himself, according to Mexican officials. US indictments claim the organization used assassins and hit squads to show its muscle.

While some theorize Mexican officials feared Guzman might expose dirty dealings among the country’s politicians, Murillo Karam said he disapproved of the United States cutting deals with criminals – as it did in 2013 with Jesús Vicente “El Vicentillo” Zambada Niebla, the son of Guzman’s top lieutenant – and not sharing with Mexico any intelligence from their cooperation. The US has sought his extradition, ABC news said. Guzman, 55, whose nickname translates as “Shorty” and refers to his small stature, escaped from Altiplano prison, 55 miles from Mexico City, in July after accomplices dug a mile-long tunnel into his cell. He is suspect in massacres and the killing of U.S. citizen David Hartley in 2010 on Falcon Lake, which straddles U.S.-Mexico border. But Guzman’s lawyers already filed appeals on those and were granted injunctions that could substantially delay the process.

Marines formed a cordon around the block on Saturday morning, and said they believed Guzman had been in the property for around 48 hours before the raid was launched. The situation deteriorated during the 2006-2012 presidency of Pena Nieto’s conservative predecessor Felipe Calderon, when almost 70,000 people lost their lives in gang-related mayhem.

El Chapo became Mexico’s top drug kingpin in 2003 after his rival Osiel Cárdenas of the Gulf Cartel was arrested. “And the fact is, they’re starting to move forward in implementing the rule of law”, said Mike Vigil, former head of global operations for the DEA.