Drug smuggling

El Chapo’s drug tunnels, explained

Gold-plated guns, stealth submarines, and lavish mansions filled with piles of money: The world’s most powerful drug trafficker, Joaquín Guzmán Loera — better known as “El Chapo” — had all of those things. But his most valuable possession might have been a shovel.

For the past few months, Guzmán has been on trial in New York City for more than 10 counts of criminal activity, including drug trafficking, money laundering, and weapons violations in the pursuit of violence.

After months of hearing evidence, the jury will soon decide his fate and anything but a guilty verdict would be a shock. Throughout the trial, the evidence presented has painted a damning picture of the violent acts El Chapo committed as the leader of the Sinaloa cartel. But in addition to gruesome anecdotes, the evidence has also revealed one of the Mexican trafficker’s most important tools: tunnels.