On The Arrest Of 'El Chapo'

'El Chapo' is the most-intelligent and most-effective drug lord the world has yet seen, and I hope his current difficulties don't lead to chaos along Mexico's Pacific coast.

The notorious Sinaloa cartel leader's nickname, which means "Shorty," belies the tall and near-mythic status Guzman achieved in recent years for his ability to elude capture by using bribes, safe houses and an army of cartel helpers.

...His 13 years on the lam ended Saturday inside a no-frills condo tower, where investigators found Guzman lying shirtless next to his beauty-queen wife.

...A key discovery earlier this month marked a turning point in the investigation: seven houses in the Mexican city of Culiacan, connected by secret tunnels that also tied in with the city's sewage system.

...When authorities raided one of them last week, it turned out to be Guzman's main residence in the town of Culiacan. The time it took Mexican marines to get past the house's reinforced steel doors was enough to allow Guzman to escape via a hidden hatch under a bathtub, the officials said.

"But the investigation was so thorough that we continued," Murillo said.

With authorities temporarily off his trail, Guzman slipped out of Culiacan through the sewer tunnels, the Mexican official told CNN. Eventually he made his way to Mazatlan, a beach resort city about 125 miles (200 km) away.