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# How ‘El Chapo’ Broke Free

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<!-- video src="https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/VksmBoKY.m3u8" -->
## Video: How ‘El Chapo’ Broke Free

[Watch (HLS stream): How ‘El Chapo’ Broke Free](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/VksmBoKY.m3u8) (1:09)

![How ‘El Chapo’ Broke Free](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/VksmBoKY/poster.jpg?width=720)

_Published 2015-07-13. Drug kingpin Joachin “El Chapo” Guzman escaped from one of Mexico’s most secure prisons Saturday night. Just how did he do it?_


---

Jul 27, 2023 6:32 PM UTC

---

## More From This Series

[All Videos](https://time.com/video/)

[El Chapo, the Notorious Drug Kingpin, Has Been Sentenced to Life in Prison in the U.S.](/video/UkszkhPl/)

### El Chapo, the Notorious Drug Kingpin, Has Been Sentenced to Life in Prison in the U.S.

[Know Right Now: Video Shows Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán Moments Before His Escape](/video/1O0MvtGB/)

### Know Right Now: Video Shows Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán Moments Before His Escape

[How Mexico's Police Caught 'El Chapo'](/video/x0uMnShP/)

### How Mexico's Police Caught 'El Chapo'

---


## Transcript

This is El Chapo Guzman, a legendary drug lord. He escaped from a maximum security prison in Mexico, for the second time. How did he do it? The story is nothing short of fantastic. The cartel leader escaped via a mile- long tunnel. Apparently he entered the shower area of his cell and dropped through a small opening in the floor. He then climbed down the 30 foot deep hole that connected to a tunnel over 5 feet in height. The elaborate underground escape route was fully ventilated and had lighting. The tunnel also had a motorcycle adapted to run on rails. It's believed that this contraption was used to cart in tools and carry out dirt during its construction.

At the end of the tunnel is a half built shack located in a farm field. The escape seems unreal, but tunnels are Goosmont's specialty, his cartel is known for building elaborate tunnels beneath the Mexican US border to transport drugs. The last time El Chapo escaped, he wasn't captured again for 13 years.

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