El Chapo May Have Made His Escape With the Help of a Sparrow
The Mexican drug lord Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzman may have had the help of a little birdie when he escaped a high-security prison on July 11 via a mile-long tunnel that connected Guzman's shower area to a construction site in a nearby farm field. According to Mexican newspaper Reforma, government officials searching Guzman's cell in the high-security Altiplano prison discovered a dead sparrow in his trash can. El Pais also reported that there was a small, dirty nest in a little window of the cell. Reportedly nicknamed "Chapito" by the officials, the bird may have been used to test for toxic substances in the tunnel  much in the same way that coal miners once carried canaries with them to detect dangerous gases underground. Other investigators said it could have been Guzman sending a subliminal message symbolizing his own flight. Reforma also reported that the Sinaloa cartel boss also left a small LCD television turned on at high-volume inside his cell to distract guards from suspecting his absence. Mexican authorities have 10,000 agents on high-alert as they try to recapture Guzman, but have not yet responded to U.S. offers of assistance. Reforma,