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Video of ‘El Chapo’ Prison Break in Mexico Surfaces Video of ‘El Chapo’ Prison Break in Mexico Surfaces
(35 minutes later)
Surveillance video broadcast by Mexican government officials on Tuesday shows the moment the drug lord Joaquín Guzmán Loera began a brazen escape from the highest-security prison in Mexico last weekend. MEXICO CITY — The camera was watching when Mexico’s most notorious drug lord, Joaquín Guzmán Loera — known as El Chapo, or Shorty — casually walked across his cell, crouched and broke out of prison through a hatch in his shower.
Mr. Guzmán, known as El Chapo, or Shorty, led the multibillion-dollar Sinaloa Cartel, evading prison for 13 years before he was captured by American and Mexican authorities at the seaside resort of Mazatlán, Mexico, last year. Surveillance video broadcast by Mexican government officials on Tuesday shows the moment of Mr. Guzmán’s brazen escape from the highest-security prison in Mexico last weekend.
Mr. Guzmán, leader of the multibillion-dollar Sinaloa Cartel, had evaded prison for 13 years before he was captured by American and Mexican authorities at the seaside resort of Mazatlán, Mexico, last year.
He is notorious for ordering the construction of tunnels to both transport drugs and evade the authorities.He is notorious for ordering the construction of tunnels to both transport drugs and evade the authorities.
In the video, he is seen crouching behind a partial wall meant to give prisoners privacy while showering — and then he is gone. The authorities discovered a two foot-by-two foot hole in the shower floor and 30 feet beneath it a mile-long tunnel equipped with lighting, ventilation and a motorcycle on rails. At the other end of the tunnel was a hole in the ground at a construction site. In the video, he is seen crouching behind a partial wall meant to give prisoners privacy while showering — and then he is gone.
At a news conference, the national security commissioner, Monte Alejandro Rubido, showed the video and said that prison employees who had been working during the escape would be questioned. The authorities discovered a hole, about 20 inches on each side, in the shower floor. About 30 feet beneath it, they found a tunnel more than a mile long, equipped with lighting, ventilation and a motorcycle on rails used to transport all the earth displaced by the grand dig.
Tall enough for Mr. Guzman to stand up in, the tunnel ended at a construction site.
The government has begun a widespread search to recapture Mr. Guzman. The head of the maximum security prison, Altiplano, has been fired, as have a host of other officials involved with the nation’s prison system. More than 40 guards and staff at the prison are also being questioned.
“It’s kind of like a joke,” Carl Pike, a retired Drug Enforcement Administration official told The New York Times on Tuesday. “ ‘Gee, a tunnel. Who would have thought?’ It’s kind of a no-brainer.”“It’s kind of like a joke,” Carl Pike, a retired Drug Enforcement Administration official told The New York Times on Tuesday. “ ‘Gee, a tunnel. Who would have thought?’ It’s kind of a no-brainer.”
American officials have offered a sweeping set of measures to help in the manhunt for Mr. Guzmán, including drones, marshals, even a special task force.American officials have offered a sweeping set of measures to help in the manhunt for Mr. Guzmán, including drones, marshals, even a special task force.
But officials on both sides of the border say that the Mexican government has kept the Americans at bay, without giving an answer on the extra help, confounding law enforcement officials and stalling efforts to recapture Mr. Guzmán.But officials on both sides of the border say that the Mexican government has kept the Americans at bay, without giving an answer on the extra help, confounding law enforcement officials and stalling efforts to recapture Mr. Guzmán.
Drug Enforcement Administration documents show that the agency warned Mexican officials 16 months ago about an escape attempt, immediately after Mr. Guzmán was caught, according to The Associated Press. Mexican officials, who spoke Tuesday night about the footage, said they found nothing odd or out of the ordinary about Mr. Guzman’s behavior before his flight. But moments later, after Mr. Guzmán passed through the opening in the bathroom area, he vanished from the feed, the prison and Mexican custody – for the second time.
By some accounts, the last time Mr. Guzmán escaped, in 2001, he hid in a laundry cart.By some accounts, the last time Mr. Guzmán escaped, in 2001, he hid in a laundry cart.
Mr. Guzman is perhaps the best-financed fugitive in the world. Forbes magazine once estimated his wealth at nearly a billion dollars. With resources and loyalists across the country, his recapture will be a tall order.
The government has deployed hundreds of forces across the country to monitor the roads, airports and transit hubs, hoping to thwart Mr. Guzman’s flight to safety.
Drug Enforcement Administration documents show that the agency warned Mexican officials 16 months ago about an escape attempt, immediately after Mr. Guzmán was caught, according to The Associated Press.