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| Joaquín Guzmán Loera, Mexican Drug Kingpin, Is Said to Escape Prison | Joaquín Guzmán Loera, Mexican Drug Kingpin, Is Said to Escape Prison |
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| Joaquín Guzmán Loera, one of the world’s most infamous drug lords, escaped from his maximum security prison cell through a tunnel dug from the shower, Mexican security officials said on Sunday, creating an acute embarrassment for the government, which had trumpeted his capture less than two years ago as a crucial victory in the long and bloody war against the narcotics trade. | |
| The escape, which was discovered late Saturday, was the second time that Mr. Guzman — known as El Chapo, or “Shorty” — has broken out of jail. In 2001, he escaped in a laundry cart, the beginning of his rise from a powerful cartel lieutenant into Mexico’s biggest drug lord. | The escape, which was discovered late Saturday, was the second time that Mr. Guzman — known as El Chapo, or “Shorty” — has broken out of jail. In 2001, he escaped in a laundry cart, the beginning of his rise from a powerful cartel lieutenant into Mexico’s biggest drug lord. |
| Officials said that he had escaped through a narrow opening of 50 centimeters by 50 centimeters that was dug from his shower. It linked up with a broader, much more elaborate tunnel that was 1.5 kilometers long, or about a mile, and about 33 feet deep that was connected by a ladder. | Officials said that he had escaped through a narrow opening of 50 centimeters by 50 centimeters that was dug from his shower. It linked up with a broader, much more elaborate tunnel that was 1.5 kilometers long, or about a mile, and about 33 feet deep that was connected by a ladder. |
| Mr. Guzmán was being held in Mexico’s most secure prison, the Altiplano, about 90 minutes drive from the capital. Police were deployed to watch all the roads around the area, and the nearby airport of Toluca was closed. | Mr. Guzmán was being held in Mexico’s most secure prison, the Altiplano, about 90 minutes drive from the capital. Police were deployed to watch all the roads around the area, and the nearby airport of Toluca was closed. |
| Eighteen prison employees were taken into custody for questioning, the authorities said. | Eighteen prison employees were taken into custody for questioning, the authorities said. |
| Days before Mr. Guzmán’s capture last year, Mexican marines and American agents raided the home of his ex-wife only to find that he had fled though a secret door beneath a bathtub that led to a network of tunnels and sewer canals that connected to six other houses in Culiacán, the capital city of Sinaloa, the state where his cartel was based. | Days before Mr. Guzmán’s capture last year, Mexican marines and American agents raided the home of his ex-wife only to find that he had fled though a secret door beneath a bathtub that led to a network of tunnels and sewer canals that connected to six other houses in Culiacán, the capital city of Sinaloa, the state where his cartel was based. |
| Mr. Guzmán was finally captured at an apartment he used in the Pacific seaside resort city of Mazatlán. | Mr. Guzmán was finally captured at an apartment he used in the Pacific seaside resort city of Mazatlán. |
| Before his capture, Mr. Guzmán presided over a vast network that smuggled cocaine and marijuana into the United States and reached as far as Europe and Africa. | Before his capture, Mr. Guzmán presided over a vast network that smuggled cocaine and marijuana into the United States and reached as far as Europe and Africa. |
| Mr. Guzmán faces organized crime and drug trafficking charges in the United States, but Mexican officials said that he would have serve his sentence in Mexico before he would be extradited. | Mr. Guzmán faces organized crime and drug trafficking charges in the United States, but Mexican officials said that he would have serve his sentence in Mexico before he would be extradited. |
| The prison escape comes as a blow to the government of President Enrique Peña Nieto, which has succeeded in capturing a number of drug bosses along with Mr. Guzman but faces the rise of new criminal groups that have emerged as larger groups have splintered. | The prison escape comes as a blow to the government of President Enrique Peña Nieto, which has succeeded in capturing a number of drug bosses along with Mr. Guzman but faces the rise of new criminal groups that have emerged as larger groups have splintered. |
| Mr. Guzmán’s escape this weekend occurred while Mr. Peña Nieto was in France on a state visit. | Mr. Guzmán’s escape this weekend occurred while Mr. Peña Nieto was in France on a state visit. |