Following allegations that Sinaloa Cartel head Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman flew his way to safety in Venezuela, InSight Crime created an interactive map showing the reported whereabouts over the past several months of one of the world’s most wanted criminals.
After a years-long manhunt, El Chapo was captured in Mazatlan, Mexico in February 2014. In July, however, he escaped from a maximum-security prison in Mexico state.
Since his escape, the drug lord has reportedly been seen and/or sought after in countries as far-flung as Argentina and the Netherlands, as well as in places closer to his home country, like Guatemala and the United States. (See InSight Crime map below) El Chapo most recently made headlines for allegedly arriving in Venezuela by plane in late September.
Although several suspects implicated in El Chapo’s escape have been arrested, the crime boss remains at large. Mexican authorities nearly captured the kingpin last month during a raid on a ranch in the Sierra Madre mountains in Sinaloa state, but he reportedly escaped with injuries to his leg and face.
InSight Crime Analysis
With an international manhunt afoot and widespread media coverage of El Chapo’s escape, it’s no surprise that his presence has been suspected in so many different countries — especially in Latin America, where he and the Sinaloa Cartel maintain extensive connections.
In addition to Venezuela, reports of El Chapo’s whereabouts recently caused a stir among Argentine officials after law enforcement officers received a tip that the drug lord might have tried to cross the country’s border with Chile. However, Argentina’s security secretary, Sergio Berni, said authorities looked into the tipster and found that there was “no truth” to the information he provided.
SEE ALSO: Coverage of El Chapo
Nevertheless, the Bolivian government announced last week that it will beef up border security in an effort to prevent El Chapo’s possible entrance into the Andean nation. In an interview with the government-run Bolivian Information Agency, Deputy Minister of Social Defense and Controlled Substances Felipe Caceres cited “rumors…that the former commander of the Police and former Director General of the Special Force against Drug Trafficking (FELCN) Oscar Nina, maintained links” with one of El Chapo’s sons.
But as the map shows, El Chapo’s best bet for finding a safe hideout is most likely in his traditional stronghold of Mexico’s “Golden Triangle,” where his folk hero status has become the subject matter of countless “narcocorridos” literally singing his praises.