'El Chapo' KiIlled? Supposed Body of Sinaloa Leader Joaquin Guzman Investigated
Authorities in Guatemala are investigating rumors on Friday that Mexico's most-wanted drug lord, Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman was killed in a gun fight.
A gun battle was reported on Thursday night by residents in a rural area of the Peten province along the Guatemalan and Mexican border that allegedly took place between two rival gangs. Residents reported a supposed dead body that resembled Guzman which remained after the fight.
However, authorities have yet to confirm that there are even any bodies to examine.
Interior Minister Mauricio Lopez Bonilla told The Associated Press that police and soldiers would begin searching on foot and in the air in an effort to find the scene of the reported gunfight.
Government spokesman Francisco Cuevas first told Guatevision Television that two drug gangs had clashed in the area and that at least two men had died in the shootout.
"We have to wait for all the technical information in order to determine if, in fact, one of the dead is of Joaquin 'El Chapo' Guzman," Cuevas said.
Authorities are also investigating photos of the bodies and added that they will not confirm if Guzman is in fact dead until they are 100 percent certain.
The Petan region has seen an increase in drug violence in recent years with 27 ranch workers killed in 2011 by the Zetas drug cartel which is a rival of Guzman's gang.
Guzman is the leader of the Sinaloa drug cartel and has been in hiding since escaping from a Mexican maximum security prison in 2001 using a laundry cart, according to Fox News.
Currently, Guzman is the most wanted man in Mexico, and the United States has offered a $5 million reward for information leading to his arrest.
The cartel leader was also named Chicago's public enemy number one last week, becoming the first criminal to receive the moniker since American gangster Al Capone, according to NBC News.
