US drug enforcement officials and US Marshals helped capture El Chapo and his right-hand man El Cholo. The drug lord had been on the run since July, when he staged a daring escape from Mexico’s most secure prison. He escaped from a firefight with marines in Los Mochis earlier on Friday before finally being recaptured. El Chapo is also wanted in the U.S. for several drug trafficking charges but it is not clear if he will be extradited.

“Mission accomplished — we have him,” Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto announced on Twitter.

Guzman’s daring escape in July — his second in 14 years — was an embarrassment for Peña Nieto, who had previously said an escape would be “unforgivable.”

U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch called Friday’s capture “a blow to the international drug-trafficking syndicate he is alleged to have led, a victory for the citizens of both Mexico and the United States, and a vindication of the rule of law in our countries.”

Guzman’s escape last year was a point of friction between the two nations. The U.S. had desired his extradition and his recapture is likely to reopen the issue. The Justice Department had no immediate comment on whether it will push to extradite Guzman to the U.S., where he faces charges in multiple jurisdictions across the country.

Mexican Marines said in a statement that marines, acting on a tip, raided a home before dawn Friday in the city of Los Mochis, in Guzman’s home state of Sinaloa. The assault team was fired upon from inside the structure. Five suspects were killed and six others arrested. One marine was wounded, but did not sustain life-threatening injuries.

SOURCE – USA TODAY.

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