According to the Associated Press, the prison in which the big drug lord "Short" Guzman will be held has become the focus of discussion. Guzman escaped from two heavily guarded Mexican prisons before he was eventually arrested and extradited to the United States.
On Tuesday, local time, a federal court in New York convicted Guzman of all 10 counts. Although the court has not yet pronounced the sentence, Guzman, 61, is expected to spend the rest of his life in prison.
Alcatraz Island in the Rockies
Experts say Guzman appears to be being held at the federal government's Supermax prison in Colorado, the most heavily guarded prison the U.S. government can offer, so much so that it has been dubbed "Alcatraz Island in the Rockies."
"Guzman is a perfect fit for this place," said Cameron Lindsay, the retired warden who runs three federal prisons, "and I would be very shocked if he hadn't been sent there." ”
Located just outside an old mining town about two hours south of Denver, Supermax is home to the nation's most violent lawbreakers, holding about 400 inmates. Many of them spend their days alone in cells made of reinforced concrete.
The most famous of these inmates include Kasinski, nicknamed "The College Bomber," Shaniyev, the convict of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings, Mousavi, a co-conspirator in the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and Nicholas, an accomplice in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombings.
The "legend" of two successful jailbreaks
But "Dwarf" Guzman, because of his legendary reputation for two successful escapes from prison, can stand out from these notorious lists.
Guzman was first arrested in 1993, but managed to escape from prison in 2001 and flee to Guadalajara, where he has since been wanted by the Mexican government. In 2014, Guzman was arrested again, ending a 13-year prison escape. But in 2015, a tunnel at least 15 meters deep and 1,500 meters long was dug from a heavily guarded prison in the capital, Mexico City, and escaped again.
He was captured again in 2016. Fearing Guzman's jailbreak again, the Mexican government extradited Guzman to the United States in January 2017 and is currently being held in a prison in Manhattan, New York.
"There must be internal collusion," said Virgil, a former U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration agent who worked undercover in Mexico. "There is no doubt that corruption played a role in both of his escapes."
A prison from which you can't escape?
One report noted that Supermax's inmates had been held in solitary confinement for years with little opportunity to interact with people.
Most of the supermax inmates are able to watch TV, but their only real connection to the outside world is a 4-inch-large window designed to make it impossible for them to even determine their exact location in the prison. Prisoners ate alone in their cells, next to the toilet.
The prison is guarded by barbed wire, gun towers, heavily armed patrols and attack dogs. The report found that, in addition to being escorted by guards while in prison, inmates may not touch another person for many years.
"If there's a prison that can't be escaped, it's Supermax's prison, it's a prison within a prison." Kane, the former warden of Louisiana State Prison, said.
Prior to the three-month trial, Guzman's imprisonment included tight security measures. On the way to and from the courthouse, police closed the Brooklyn Bridge, followed by SWAT teams, ambulances and helicopters, as well as heavy armed federal officials patrolling outside the courthouse and bomb sniffer dogs.
Officials were so concerned about security that Guzman was even forbidden to hug his wife at trial.
Cover news reporter Yan Lei comprehensive compilation report