Marines nearly captured Guzman in October after U.S. A third conspirator allegedly negotiated the purchase of the plot of land where the tunnel emerged. The escape was organized by a member of Guzman's legal team who had access to Altiplano and was able to keep his boss updated on the plan's progress, authorities have said.Ī Guzman brother-in-law is also believed to have supervised construction of the tunnel. A second plane also took off in an apparent attempt to throw off pursuers. The getaway damaged relations between Mexican and American anti-drug authorities, who had warned that Guzman's associates would try to break him out of Altiplano.Īfter fleeing the prison, Guzman traveled by land to the city of Queretaro, where officials say he caught a small plane to a mountainous region of Sinaloa, his home state and stronghold, Attorney General Arely Gomez has said. Since the Altiplano escape, 23 prison officials and employees have been arrested, and several of Guzman’s Sinaloa underlings have been rounded up. “We’re going to continue to fight organized crime.” “Our institutions have shown once again that the citizens can trust these institutions,” Peña Nieto said. Nieto on Friday thanked the agencies that he said conducted “months of careful and detailed intelligence work” and worked “for days and nights tirelessly to accomplish the mission that I have asked them to do.”
PHOTOS: A Glimpse Inside ElChapo's Tunnel
