World’s Most Wanted Drug Trafficker & Forbes Billionaire Finally Captured With A Woman After 12 years [PHOTOS]

 He has been on the run for more than 12 years but a moment of passion appears to have been the downfall for the world’s most wanted drug lord.

Joaquin ‘El Chapo’ Guzman, described as the most powerful drug trafficker in the world, was arrested in a beach condominium on Saturday with help from U.S. agencies in a major victory for the government in a long, grisly war.


Guzman, known as “El Chapo” (Shorty) in Spanish, has long run Mexico’s infamous Sinaloa Cartel and over the past decade he emerged as one of the world’s most powerful organized crime bosses, even making it onto Forbes’ list of billionaires and listed as one of the world’s richest men.

 When Mexican marines burst into the apartment he was staying in at 6.40am the discovered Guzman with an unidentified woman. Guzman, also known as Shorty, was photographed being escorted by troops through Mexico City airport later in the day. No shots were fired as troops burst in on the 56-year-old drug lord in Mazatlan, and he was arrested along with three men believed to be his bodyguards. A team of 25 marines entered the complex on Saturday morning, overpowering two security teams installed to protect the drug kingpin.

Guzman faces drug trafficking and other charges, and is wanted in at least six U.S. districts, as well as Mexico.

Despite being wanted in two countries, Guzman had evaded capture for more than 12 years, but in the end his complacency led to his downfall, a former DEA official said.

The suspected drug lord is believed to lead a cartel with revenues estimated at more than $3 billion a year, and he has been ranked as one of the riches men in the world by Forbes for several years.