How Did Drug Lord ‘El Chapo’ Escape From a Mexican Prison?

The Altiplano prison in Mexico on July 12, 2015, after drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman made his escape. (Getty)

A mile-long tunnel was found leading from a hole in the Altiplano prison in Mexico after notorious drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman escaped from the maximum-security facility on Saturday.

Authorities in Mexico said a massive manhunt is underway to find “El Chapo,” who is the leader of one of the country’s most dangerous drug gangs, the Sinaloa cartel, according to ABC News. He was arrested in February 2014.

The tunnel included lighting, a ventilation system and a motorcycle built on rails to move building materials, Vice News reported. The tunnel opened into an abandoned construction site.

According to the Associated Press, the tunnel opened into a 20-by-20-inch hole in the floor of the shower area of El Chapo’s prison cell.

“El Chapo” Guzman after his arrest in February 2014. (Getty)

Guzman, 60, escaped from prison in January 2001 after serving nearly eight years in prison. He was recaptured last year inside a condo in Mazatlan, Sinoloa.

Authorities told the Washington Post that Guzman was last seen at 8 p.m. Saturday night. The prison is in a remote area surrounded by farmland. Mexican security officials said military and police have been deployed to the area to search for Guzman, and it has been locked down. The nearby Toluca airport has shut down to prevent him from taking a plane.

The United States government, which also indicted Guzman on drug charges, had pleaded with the Mexican government to extradite the dangerous gangster to the U.S., where he could be kept in a more secure facility, but Mexico denied that request.

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