Mexicos Notorious Drug Lord 'El Chapo' Guzman Moved To Juárez Prison

By Mónica Ortiz Uribe
May 09, 2016
Eduardo Verdugo/AP via NPR
Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman.

Mexico's notorious drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman is being held at a federal prison 15 miles south of the U.S.-Mexico border in Ciudad Juárez.

While Guzman's transfer early Saturday morning set off wide speculation that his extradition to the U.S. was imminent, authorities would not confirm it. The official reason for the move was due to security upgrades at the prison outside Mexico City where Guzman had been held since his recapture in January.

Juárez is home to one of the largest U.S. consulates in the world and is just across the border from El Paso where Guzman is named in a federal indictment. Guzman is wanted in multiple U.S. states including California, Arizona and New York. Mexico is working with the U.S. to extradite Guzman. His lawyers are fighting the effort, which is expected to slow down the process.

Guzman heads the powerful Sinaloa drug cartel which now controls the smuggling routes through Juárez after defeating the local Juárez cartel in a bloody turf war that began in 2008.