How Mexican Drug Lord El Chapo Once Escaped From Maximum Security Prison

Seven years ago this month, notorious Mexican drug kingpin Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman managed to slip out of prison for the second time. The Sinaloa Cartel boss escaped from Mexico's Altiplano Federal Penitentiary prison through a tunnel of the facility. This escape allowed him to run his criminal organization for another 16 months before being captured again in January 2016.

Looking back through his timeline of escapes, Guzman was first captured in Guatemala on the 10th of June 1995. Despite being behind bars, the capo was still able to smoothly manage his drug business while incarcerated at Puente Grande. Guzman was locked up for his involvement in the bloody shootout at the Guadalajara airport in 1993.

According to Business Insider, on January 18, 2001, the Supreme Court of Mexico ruled the extradition of Mexican prisoners to the United States. Guzman feared this would end his charmed Mexican prison life so he allegedly coughed out roughly $2.5 million in bribes to be snuck out of the maximum-security prison the following day. He was smuggled out of Puente Grande tucked inside a dirty laundry cart that rolled him to freedom with the help of well-greased prison guards. The cart passed through unguarded hallways and breezed through electronic doors unchecked and finally out into a parking lot where he was assisted by another guard into his getaway vehicle.

El Chapo got back to business as usual with the cartel for 14 years until his re-capture by Mexican authorities in February 2014 in Mazatlan. He was caught hiding in tunnels when law enforcement found him. He was tossed into the top-security facility of the Altiplano Federal Prison where he again managed to escape on July 11, 2015, despite precautions that were taken to ensure there would not be a repeat of an escape.

However, Guzman once again proved to be quite the slippery inmate. The drug lord was able to find his way out of the maximum-security federal prison through a tunnel from his shower that was connected to a half-built guarded warehouse outside the facility. The tunnel was rigged with a motorcycle that was adapted to a rail that ran a track through the tunnel route all the way to the warehouse. It had running lights and a ventilation system to ensure a comfortable escape. El Chapo was last seen on security cameras entering the shower in his cell which did not have camera visibility.

A national manhunt was conducted with all airports in the country locked down. El Chapo was captured 16 months later in January 2016. Five people were killed and one marine wounded during the shootout between the cartel army and the Mexican marines.