Drug trafficking

El Chapo's conviction is 'great moral victory,' but has 'done nothing' against Sinaloa cartel, experts say

"The conviction of Chapo Guzmán was a great moral victory because it subjected him to the rule of law," Mike Vigil, the former chief of international operations for the Drug Enforcement Administration, told NBC News on Wednesday.

"The conviction though has done nothing to impact the Sinaloa cartel because it remains the most powerful cartel in Mexico," he said.

Guzmán, 61, was found guilty Tuesday on all 10 charges he faced for crimes spanning more than a quarter of a century. Those charges included engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise and multiple counts of distributing large amounts of narcotics internationally. Guzmán, famous for his two prior prison escapes in Mexico, now faces life in prison in the United States and will likely be sent to a federal Supermax facility.

Despite the spectacle of Guzmán's trial in the U.S., the Mexican strategy of going after notorious "kingpins" has only increased the violence by splintering cartels that then fight over territory, according to Guadalupe Correa-Cabrera, a professor of policy and government at the George Mason University in Fairfax County, Virginia.