El Chapo: With Drug Money Comes Ample Power

By: Faisal Quyyumi, contributing intern (@_faisalquyyumi)

About a month after David Sweat and Richard Matt escaped in New York, maximum security prisons continue to lack proper enforcement. Joaquín Archivaldo Guzmán Loera, known as El Chapo, escaped from the Federal Social Readaptation Center No. 1 on July 11th. Guzman is the head of Mexico’s largest drug cartel (Sinalao Cartel) and is referred to as the “biggest drug lord of all time” by the DEA. Guzman has a net worth of roughly $1 billion.

Reports state that Guzman had entered the shower area of his cell and was never seen again. It was a carefully manipulated plan by Guzman who realized that the shower is the only place in his cell without any cameras. The hole in which El Chapo escaped through was only 2 feet wide and long. The hole led to a mile-long tunnel, which was well equipped with electricity to help provide lighting and air conditioning.

After previously escaping from prison in 2001, President Enrique Peña Nieto stated that a second escape would be “unforgivable.” The tunnel opening is near a construction site in the small town of Almoloya de Juárez and from there, Guzman’s whereabouts are unknown. Out of 120 employees at the prison, 18 of them have been brought in for questioning including the director of the prison.