Guadalajara -
Mexican news sources tonight are reporting the possible death of Sinaloa Cartel boss Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán in Guatemala today. Guzmán is the most wanted narcotics trafficker in the world.
Guatemalan security forces killed four men in a shootout near the community of San Francisco earlier Thursday. Authorities there are trying to identify the men, who are suspected of being drug traffickers.
"I've not been able to confirm, nor do I have any information to verify such reports. But we're in communication with the government of Guatemala," president Enrique Peña Nieto said this evening.
The suspicion that one of the men might be Guzmán is based upon alleged physical similarities and facial resemblance, according to anecdotal accounts from the vicinity of the shootout.
Guatemalan Interior Minister Mauricio López Bonilla told the press, "One of them looks very much like El Chapo," further fueling the speculation.
A Milenio news service reporter in the region said late tonight that the Guatemalan army has issued no statement on the case, nor has it suggested that its soldiers may have killed the elusive trafficker.
Many Mexican drug cartels and organized crime groups have moved their operations to Guatemala in recent months, under heavy pressure from military forces in this country. Guatemalan ambassador warns of growing Los Zeta drug cartel presence in his country.
Mexican forensic analysts are on their way to Guatemala at this hour to assist with the identification. They hope to confirm that one of the men killed today is Guzmán, or to exclude the victim based on DNA evidence and other comparisons.
Guzmán escaped from a Mexican prison in January 2001 and has been on the lam since. The U.S. and Mexico have offered combined rewards of $7 million for his capture. He has been indicted several times in American courts, including last April in El Paso. In that case Guzmán faces allegations of drug smuggling, kidnapping, conspiracy, murder, money laundering and violations of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO). The charges carry up to life imprisonment without parole. Twenty-two other key Sinaloa cartel operatives were also charged with him. El Chapo Guzmán indicted by feds in El Paso.
On Feb. 10 Mexican marines arrested the chief executioner for El Chapo Guzmán in Sinaloa state, on the country's Pacific coast.
On Feb. 14 the Chicago Crime Commission labeled El Chapo Guzmán "Public Enemy # 1." Sources have reported that Guzmán's Sinaloa Cartel is the largest supplier of drugs in the world to the city. The Chicago Connection: Sinaloa Cartel moves cocaine from Windy City to Australia
8:30 a.m. Last night's reports seem even more shaky in the light of day. Villagers who live near the site of the gun fight called press sources in the capital, Guatemala City, to report the event, and said "one of the dead men looks like El Chapo Guzmán." That's what set off the rumors. In the meantime, Guatemalan army regulars and national police units have not yet been able to locate the remote site of the battle to verify that it actually occurred, or that anyone was killed. That's why MGRR described the story (above) as based upon "anecdotal accounts." It may never prove to be anything more than that - just a story. There are urban legends, and then there are jungle legends in Guatemala.
Feb. 21 - Muerte del Chapo Guzmán, así nació el rumor en Guatemala
Mar. 1 - Mexican drug traffickers murder two Guatemalan National Police agents near Chiapas border
MGRR summary of latest news accounts - in Spanish
Guatemalan government spokesman Francisco Cuevas was forced to downplay initial reports today
El Chapo Guzmán and the Sinaloa Cartel
Guzmán women head north to deliver - kids, not drugs
Routine traffic stop in Mérida yields Sinaloa Cartel "Boss of the Plaza" in Cozumel, Playa del Carmen
What do business magnate Carlos Slim and El Chapo Guzmán have in common?
U.S. confirms: El Chapo Guzmán is world's biggest drug trafficker - and # 1 target
World's most wanted man - El Chapo Guzmán - makes Forbes top list again
El Chapo Guzmán: "Dead or Alive"
"El Chapo" Guzmán must be in United States, says Felipe Calderón
Sinaloa Cartel of El Chapo Guzmán dominates U.S. drug trade, says DOJ
Wife of Mexican drug lord El Chapo Guzmán delivers twin girls in U.S. hospital
The drug war in Central America
Los Zetas are "dominant force" in Central America and have foothold in Belize, says U.N. analysis
More evidence Mexican drug war strategy is working, as violence shifts southward, says UNODC
Guatemalan army joins drug war - "We have to neutralize organized crime," says new president
"Almost bankrupt" Guatemala calls for U.S. help in fighting drug cartels, forced labor, sex trafficking
Honduras "invaded by drug traffickers" - tons of cocaine shipped to U.S., "where the customers are"
Expanding U.S. presence in Latin drug wars
Mexican drug cartels enjoy global presence via cocaine
State Dept. says Mexico is "witnessing the end of drug trafficking" - with worrisome shift to Caribbean
Drug cartels present greater threat to U.S. security than Iran, says U.S. State Department
© MGRR 2013. All rights reserved. This article may be cited or briefly quoted with proper attribution or a hyperlink, but not reproduced without permission.
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