Page 12 - atoday
P. 12
A12
WORLD NEWSMonday 19 October 2015
Mexican drug lord flown to Sinaloa mountains after escape
E. EDUARDO CASTILLO In this 2014 photo, Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman is escorted to Security Cabinet said of- in a telephone interview
Associated Press a helicopter in handcuffs by Mexican navy marines at a navy ficials think the legendary with The Associated Press.
MEXICO CITY (AP) — Fu- hanger in Mexico City. Guzman was flown to a mountainous drug lord injured a leg and “They came very afraid.”
gitive drug lord Joaquin region of his home state of Sinaloa following his daring July 11 his face fleeing Mexican Oscar Loza, spokesman
“El Chapo” Guzman was escape from prison through a mile-long tunnel, a federal official marines in the rugged ter- for the Commission for the
flown to a mountainous said Saturday. rain. It provided no details Defense of Human Rights
region of his home state of on when or exactly where of Sinaloa, said his group
Sinaloa following his daring (AP Photo/Eduardo Verdugo) the operation took place, began getting calls from
July 11 escape from prison but the area of mountains the search area on Oct. 6
through a mile-long tunnel, the leader of the powerful a pilot who aided Guzman of Sinaloa and Durango is asking for help from peo-
a federal official said Satur- Sinaloa Cartel was taken after his escape. The fed- in northwest Mexico. ple who reported Mexican
day. to the central state of Que- eral official said Saturday The statement cited infor- troops were shooting in the
Based on this information, retaro. From there, he was that it was the pilot who mation-sharing with inter- area and also hindering
the search for the world’s flown in a small plane to flew Guzman in the small national agencies for lead- the movement of residents.
most wanted drug boss the Sinaloan mountains, plane.Late Friday, the gov- ing authorities to the area. “Saturday the 10th we
has focused in recent the official said. ernment said Guzman had On Saturday, a mayor in were able to get to one of
weeks on a rugged area Several days ago, Attorney avoided capture in an op- the region said hundreds the communities, called El
that stretches from Sinaloa General Arely Gomez told eration in the mountains of of people had left their Verano, and they received
into neighboring Durango Mexican lawmakers that northwestern Mexico. homes in mountain com- us in tears.
state, part of Mexico’s in- authorities had captured A statement by Mexico’s munities in the search area They were very afraid,”
famous Golden Triangle in fear of the military op- Loza said.
drug-producing region eration. Samuel Lizarraga, One resident, who would
that is considered Guz- mayor of the Cosala mu- give only the name Hera-
man’s home turf, said the nicipality, said that in the clio, told AP journalists that
official, who agreed to previous 10 days officials marines had been firing
give details of the opera- had recorded the arrival of weapons and exploding
tion only if not quoted by 250 heads of households, grenades even though
name. which he estimated meant they knew women and
The official said that after a total of 600 to 700 adults children live in the area.
Guzman’s escape from the and children. “They came shooting at
maximum-security prison “Some told us that they my brother’s ranch,” he
where he was being held had been walking up to complained. Guzman pre-
not far from Mexico City, six days from parts of the viously escaped from an-
mountain zones,” he said other maximum-security
prison in 2001, and evaded
Colombia, rebels agree to joint search for missing capture for years in the
mountains of Sinaloa.
BOGOTA, Colombia (AP) said Sunday the agree- talks on a peace treaty. an independent commis- His most recent escape
— Colombia’s govern- ment aims to ease “the They have committed sion would be created to strained relations with
ment and its biggest rebel profound pain of relatives to reach a final deal by oversee the search for the Washington, which had
movement say they’ll work of the disappeared” who March. missing. formally requested the
together to locate thou- have lived in permanent Both sides agreed to give Some 25,000 people have drug kingpin’s extradition
sands of people who van- uncertainty for years. information on people who been registered as missing just weeks earlier.
ished during more than 50 Representatives of the gov- died, whether in combat or since 1985. An estimated A variety of U.S. officials,
years of conflict, hoping to ernment and the Revolu- as victims of kidnappings, 220,000 have died and including lawmakers and
advance toward a perma- tionary Armed Forces of force disappearances or 5 million have been dis- law enforcement officials,
nent peace. Colombia announced the massacres. placed from their homes had called for Guzman’s
Chief Government nego- plan Saturday in Cuba, De la Calle said at a news during the conflict as a transfer to the U.S. since his
tiator Humberto de la Calle where they are holding conference in Bogota that whole.q arrest in February 2014. q
